Fluvanna board votes to advertise rate increase for Fork Union Sanitary District water service

The Fluvanna County Board of Supervisors voted July 2 to advertise a public hearing on Aug. 20 proposing increases to Fork Union Sanitary District (FUSD) water rates: raising the minimum monthly charge from $24 to $27 and the per-1,000-gallon charge from $11.22 to $12.50. The board’s advertisement starts the formal process; the hearing will let customers and other stakeholders comment before any ordinance change.

County staff said the FUSD system is losing money and has had heavy repair costs this fiscal year. Dan Dahl, county staff, told the board the district faces substantial repairs in an aging system and that the increase would yield only modest additional revenue in the current fiscal year — roughly $14,000 if adopted — while shortfalls could top about $125,000 this year.

“This year we’re looking like we’re probably going to be close to a $125,000 short in revenues versus expenses,” Dahl said. He and public utilities staff described recurring pump and pipe failures and lower revenue linked to several large users reducing consumption or resolving leaks.

Public utilities manager Matt Mitchell (identified in the meeting as Mr. Mitchell) added, “The system’s been in the ground for 40-plus years, and all of these [components] are taking time off,” describing frequent maintenance and replacements.

Supervisors pressed staff for alternatives to blunt the impact on fixed‑income households and discussed rate designs that shift more cost to high-volume users. Supervisor Matt (last name not specified in the transcript) suggested exploring a rate structure with a lower base and an escalating per‑gallon charge, citing examples from other local systems. Supervisor Tim Hodge proposed advertising the specific increase but leaving room in August for staff to present additional rate options.

Dahl said the county will likely need to consider a loan payable between the county and the sanitary district — a remedy used in prior years — and that the district’s full debt-service payment of about $60,000 is scheduled for FY26, dropping to roughly $30,000 in FY27. He also said larger capital work — including a Fork Union water-supply project — would not quickly relieve immediate, system‑age maintenance costs.

The board voted to advertise amendments to county code sections 9-2-2 and 9-2-5 to implement the proposed rates, with the public hearing scheduled for Aug. 20. If approved at final reading, staff said a September effective date would allow billing to take effect in November because utility billing runs in arrears.

The advertisement authorizes the Aug. 20 hearing but is not a final approval. Staff and supervisors said they intend to return with more detailed financial projections and alternative rate scenarios for the public hearing and future budget discussions.

Clarifying details: The proposal affects 444 FUSD customers; moving the minimum from $24 to $27 would be a 12.5% increase; increasing the per‑1,000‑gallon charge from $11.22 to $12.50 is roughly an 11.4% increase. Staff estimated the proposed increase would generate about $14,000 for the current fiscal year and described an anticipated multi‑year program of further increases unless other measures are adopted.

The advertisement of the hearing does not itself change rates. Customers said they want a multi‑year plan rather than annual single‑year increases; some supervisors asked staff to model alternate rate structures that shift more cost to high-volume business users. The board did not adopt any multi‑year schedule at the July 2 meeting; it only authorized advertising the specific ordinance changes for public hearing.

Provenance: Excerpted from staff presentation and board discussion on Fork Union Sanitary District rates and the board motion to advertise a public hearing.