Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Utilities Billing topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Putnam County to credit customers after billing system read delay
Summary
A billing‑system migration caused meters to be read seven days late in March; the county will apply credits to affected water and sewer accounts after confirming the timing error and approved the credit approach during the consent agenda.
Putnam County staff told commissioners on May 13 that a recent billing‑system transition temporarily prevented timely meter reads, producing bills that in some cases crossed higher usage thresholds because the meters were read seven days late. The county will apply account credits rather than issue checks to reimburse affected customers.
Cause and remedy: staff said the Neptune 360 billing system did not communicate as expected with the county's AS/400 platform during the migration and that the issue delayed meter reads by about seven days for the March billing cycle. The late readings may have caused some accounts to cross volume thresholds (for example, a 2,000‑gallon block) that increased charges. Public Works staff recommended—and the board approved—a credit to each affected account rather than issuing checks.
Board discussion: some commissioners asked whether administrative authority exists to approve similar adjustments in the future. County staff and legal counsel explained that rates and fee schedules are set by ordinance and that the board may grant administrative authority in future fee ordinances; as the regulations stand now, fee changes are under board control. Staff confirmed credits will be applied as account credits on customers' next bills rather than as mailed checks.
Outcome: the board approved the recommended crediting process as part of the consent agenda. Staff said they would continue to resolve Neptune 360 communication issues and work with customers who called about March bills.
