The Bossier City Council on July 29 introduced (first reading) an ordinance to allocate $250,000 from the Water Capital and Contingency Fund to purchase on-demand water meters, after staff briefed the council on degraded meter-read capability across the system and options to replace aging equipment.

Council discussion centered on the size of the problem, cost estimates and payback. Staff said about 2,600 meters are not reading and that replacing those meters citywide would cost in the multimillion-dollar range. Staff cited a planning estimate of roughly $3,000,000 to replace the non-functioning meters, including labor and installation; updated pricing was pending. Staff also projected that recovered revenue from accurate meter reads could be approximately $2,600,000 and that, on that projection, replacement could pay for itself in about a year once implemented.

Councilwoman Deborah Ross moved to introduce the $250,000 appropriation; Councilman Maggio seconded the motion and it passed on first reading. Council members asked for details on the number of meters the appropriation would purchase and on lead times; city staff said they expected updated price and lead-time information at a meeting the following week and that a comprehensive plan would be presented to council and budget/finance committee before final appropriation of larger sums.

Discussion included operational details: staff said the administration currently estimates meters at the end of service life have digital registers with internal batteries and that meter replacement typically involves purchase and installation costs. Rodney (water operations) told council some meters have a four-month backorder and that some meter sizes have different lead times. Council members asked that commercial-critical accounts be prioritized in any phased replacement.

The council instructed staff to return with updated price quotes, installation costs and a phase plan; the ordinance to allocate $250,000 was introduced and will return for a subsequent reading for final adoption.

Ending: Council members signaled support for a phased replacement plan and directed staff to work with the budget and finance committee to refine the numbers before the ordinance returns for final action.