Committee reviews WSSC CIP priorities: lead abatement, PFAS planning and smart meters flagged for follow-up

The committee received a briefing on capital priorities for the Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission (WSSC) and related county implications, including placeholders in the sixyear CIP for a master-planning effort, lead-abatement work, PFAS planning and smart-meter deployment.

Committee members asked WSSC and staff for a breakdown of revenue collection and disbursement between Montgomery County and Prince Georges County because WSSC operates a unified water and sewer district for both jurisdictions. A WSSC representative said the commission treats the system as unified and that funds are allocated based on system needs and geography; staff offered to provide the requested breakdown. "We can get that information," the representative said.

Councilmember Andrew Stewart (as identified in the meeting as Councilmember Stewart) asked whether recent federal budget uncertainty affecting the District of Columbia could affect Blue Plains operations and any pass-through costs to Montgomery County. WSSC staff said their preliminary assessment from DC Water indicated the federal funding changes would have a minimal immediate impact and that DC Water believed it could absorb estimated costs. "They don't anticipate anything happening," a staff member reported back to the committee about DC Waters assessment.

Committee members and staff also discussed a smart-meter initiative included in the CIP under an umbrella project. Staff described the substantial upfront cost of replacing legacy meters and noted an outreach need: newer meters generally read more accurately and "tend to read higher," which could result in higher bills for some customers when meters are replaced. The committee asked WSSC and staff for additional detail on meter timing, the distinction between maintenance of aging mains versus new construction, and a clearer accounting of revenue sources between the two counties ahead of budget negotiations.

The committee supported the WSSC CIP as presented for committee review and asked WSSC staff and county staff to return with additional data on revenue splits, aging-infrastructure needs, and projected rate impacts ahead of operating-budget and bi-county coordination in April and May.