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Livingston delays smart‑meter purchase after residents raise health, privacy and billing concerns
Summary
After several residents urged caution over smart water meters, the Livingston City Commission held off on a purchase order for 250 advanced metering units and asked staff to report back on health, privacy, billing and opt‑out options.
The Livingston City Commission paused a consent‑item purchase of 250 new water meters on Tuesday after multiple residents raised health, privacy and billing concerns and asked the city to provide more information about opt‑out options.
Why it matters: The city is updating aging meter infrastructure for remote reads and operational efficiency across roughly 4,000 utility accounts, but several residents told the commission they fear radio‑frequency health effects, increased surveillance of household energy use and billing errors. Commissioners directed staff to return with a report on technical details, health and safety information and the feasibility of an opt‑out program before the commission acts on the purchase order.
At public comment, Linda Marr of 113 South Dem Speak told the commission she was opposed to the Ferguson smart meters under consideration and cited a decades‑old compilation of…
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