Resident complains of large water leak and late notification; utilities director says billing adjustments made, staff to follow up

Susan Johnson, a Summerfield resident, told the Marion County Board of County Commissioners on Oct. 21 that she was billed for an estimated 254,000 gallons after a leak at her Del Webb home and that she had not been properly notified before a large bill arrived.

Johnson said the bill showed 89,000 gallons during an early‑August billing period and that her typical monthly use is about 1,000 gallons. She told the board she had a contractor detect and repair an irrigation leak and that she received county notification only after the repair.

Tony Cunningham, the county’s utilities director, said the county’s automated meter readers are read monthly and that the county’s exception report led to an analyst review that generated a work order. He said the county reduced the customer’s billed usage to the third rate tier and issued wastewater bill credits in line with the county’s leak adjustment ordinance; the combined reductions in her account were in the several‑hundred‑dollar range.

Cunningham said Marion County does not have continuous real‑time metering (AMI); AMR reads are taken monthly and the meter’s stored interval data can be pulled during field investigation to identify the leak start and stop times. He said records show the leak began near July 28, ramped up in early August and was repaired on Aug. 11.

Chairman Bryant asked county staff to confirm which phone number received the county’s attempted calls on Aug. 11 and Aug. 13 and to follow up with the resident. Assistant County Administrator Angel Roussel joined Cunningham in promising staff follow‑up; the board did not take formal action but instructed staff to return with additional documentation for the resident.