Utility committee discusses rate plan and EPA staffing requirement for treatment plant

The Pataskala City Council received a utility-committee update about proposed water and sewer rates and a federal staffing requirement affecting the wastewater plant.

A council member reporting from the utility committee said the committee discussed several rate options and described a proposal that would raise rates in stages (an 8% increase in 2026, followed by 5% increases in 2028 and 2030) intended to reach a target fund balance of about $1 million. The committee also reported a decision that there would be no sewer rate increase for 2026; the staff discussion recorded both that decision and the staged-option recommendation for reaching the target, indicating the committee considered multiple scenarios.

Committee members also raised an Environmental Protection Agency requirement that a wastewater-plant operator be on-site 40 hours per week for a facility of the city’s size. The committee noted that the city’s current certified operator, who also covers two water plants, cannot meet the on-site 40-hour requirement alone. The city is assembling personnel options, including reassigning licensed staff, and will reapply to the EPA for a reduction in the on-site requirement; the transcript records that the EPA could deny that request, in which case the city would need to ensure a qualified operator is on site for the required hours.

Councilmember Tim Hicken (reporting on related administrative work) said he and other staff are coordinating license transfers and staffing plans to address the EPA requirement. No formal rate ordinance or vote was recorded; the report concluded with direction for staff to continue planning and for the finance committee to meet about the Brown Avenue Bridge funding and other finance topics.