DUBOIS – Residents in and around the City of DuBois will see increased water rates eventually.
The DuBois City Council approved a the first reading of an ordinance amending the code of ordinances of the City of DuBois, retroactive to Sept. 1, 2006.
As a result of a settlement involving the between the DuBois City Water Bureau, the state’s Office of Consumer Advocate, the state’s Office of Small Business Advocate and the Commission’s Office of Trial Staff., the Pennsylvania Public Utilities Commission issued an order to be adopted by the City of DuBois. According to a press release from the PUC’s website, the rate increase was lower than the amount originally requested by the City of DuBois.
The increase will affect residents within the City of DuBois and Sandy Township. According to City of DuBois Solicitor Toni Cherry, the PUC had wanted rates within the City of DuBois and outside the the city to be uniform for some time.
Cherry said that the city would be justified to charge more outside it’s boundaries, but to resolve the matter, they had to have even rates.
For the first 9,000 gallons gallons per quarter used, residents will be charged $5.15 per thousand gallons. The old rate was $4.18. For the next 291,00 gallons per quarter, the cost is $3.30 per thousand gallons. The previous charge was $2.68. For the next 300,000 gallons per quarter, the charge is $2.43 per thousand gallons. The old charge was $1.97.
Also approved were new minimum quarterly charges for meters, based on the size of the meter. Meters sized five-eighths of an inch to three-quarters of an inch are charged $10.30 per quarter, versus the old charge of $12.54. Meters of one-inch size are worth $13.74 per quarter, with the old charge being $16.72 per quarter. One-and-a-half inch meters are priced at $34.34 per quarter versus $40.30. Owners of two-inch meters will be charged $71.65 per quarter versus the old charge of $80.50 per quarter. Three-inch meters are worth $155.25 per quarter versus $182.34 per quarter. Four-inch meters will cost $269.65 per quarter versus $321.70 per quarter. Six-inch meters will cost $346.65 per quarter versus $415.50 per quarter. And lastly, eight-inch meters will cost $544.65 per quarter versus $656.70 per quarter.
Another aspect of the first reading of the ordinance was charges for fire protection. The ordinance read that “whenever water is used on any metered premises for fire protection in an actual case of conflagration, no charge will be made for the same, and the amount so used shall be ascertained by comparison with the previous average use shown on the meter.
It also announced that the charge for unmetered fire protection service will be $184.37 per hydrant, per year.
However, there were many questions about metered and unmetered hydrants. City of DuBois mayor John “Herm” Suplizio questioned what warranted a metered hydrant. Suplizio said he knew of only one metered hydrant, and that was in Sandy Township.
There is a possibility that in the end, the only charge will be the $184.37 per hydrant, per year charge.