Radford resident cites soaring utility bills as council explains fee and pool cost changes

A Radford resident testified at a City Council meeting that steep utility bills and a recent rent increase are straining her finances, and council members explained why some fees and community subsidies changed. "My income is $10.15 dollars And that's per month," said Beth Barber during the public-comment portion. "My last electric bill was $1.93. And 63 of that was this fee that we're all getting."Mayor Horton (Mayor) responded that the $63 line on Barber's bill is a wholesale power adjustment passed through to customers by the city's wholesale power provider and that the city must pass some fuel- or cost-recovery charges along to customers. Horton said the city also removed a prior subsidy that allowed residents reduced admission to the aquatic center as part of budget decisions intended to avoid larger tax or utility rate increases. "With the budget situation the way that it's been, that was one of the pieces that we had to eliminate," Horton said. The council encouraged Barber to consider the city's utility budget plan option, which spreads an annualized estimated cost into monthly payments to reduce bill-to-bill volatility. City staff and council members emphasized they are not the source of wholesale fuel adjustments and said the city is working to manage overall budget pressures while minimizing tax increases. The public comment item closed after council members invited more residents to contact billing staff and to use public-comment time for community concerns.