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Portage County approves $182 water-service credit tied to unclear ownership and estimated reads
Summary
The county approved a $182 credit for a water account after staff reported meter-reading failures, an estimated read period and unclear transfer of title between similarly named residents during the COVID emergency.
Daniel Blakey, director of Portage County Water Resources, recommended the board authorize a $182 credit to a customer after staff determined the account had been estimated for a multi-year period and ownership records are unclear.
Blakey described an "unusual situation" stemming from an estimated read in 2019. He said a quick-claim deed conveyed the property from a man identified in the record as Christopher Dinobotny to a person identified as his son, and the utility lacks clear documentation showing the account transfer. "It makes me nervous trying to make a call on it," Blakey said, describing the difficulty of apportioning use and charges when final reads were not completed at the time of the ownership change.
Blakey told commissioners the department prorated the previously estimated undercharge across the two identified accounts, producing a suggested split in which the father would receive a $182 credit and the son would pay roughly $6.96. Blakey recommended crediting $182 to the elder account because the underlying reads and any intervening leaks or usage patterns cannot be verified.
The board voted to accept Blakey's recommendation and authorized the $182 credit for water services; a roll-call vote recorded unanimous approval.
Why it matters: The action resolves an outstanding billing discrepancy tied to meter-reading interruptions and a recorded property transfer. It relieves the account identified as the elder owner of an $182 balance and directs staff to collect the small balance assigned to the other account.
What happens next: County water staff will apply the credit to the account identified in the meeting and pursue collection of the remaining small balance from the second account as appropriate.
