Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Utilities Water topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Resident criticizes Dickenson County PSA leak billing and late‑fee policy
Summary
A longtime county resident urged supervisors to press the Dickenson County Public Service Authority to flag excessive usage, cap catastrophic leak bills and stop compounding late fees after receiving a $4,280 bill for a buried leak.
Wayne Newberry, a Dickenson County resident, told the Board of Supervisors on Feb. 15 that he received a $4,280 water bill after a leak in an unoccupied family property and called the Public Service Authority’s billing and payment‑plan policies “exploitative.” Newberry said leak insurance covered $2,500, leaving him responsible for a smaller amount, but warned that many residents could not afford similar bills or the insurance that would limit their exposure.
Newberry said the PSA told him the leak used about 390,000 gallons of water, and that the PSA’s offered payment plan applies a 10% late fee each month to the remaining balance. He said the plan can produce what he calculated as roughly a 76% effective interest cost over a year if a customer pays the flat installment the PSA first quoted, and called the compounding fee structure “predatory.” "Payment plans should be clear and provide relief and shouldn't force you into a guessing game," he said.
Board members asked whether the PSA sets the policy. Shelby, identified in the meeting as a member of the PSA board, told the supervisors the 10% fee is a PSA policy set by appointed board members and that the PSA is considering adjusting the fee in July to “what the state recommends.” Shelby also said the PSA offers optional leak insurance and that, when customers buy it, the PSA has previously reduced leak charges for qualifying customers.
Supervisors and other residents raised operational concerns, saying meters are read by drive‑by collection and many meter boxes are locked, which limits customers’ ability to spot early high use. Newberry and other speakers asked the county and the PSA to add automatic flags or more frequent checks to detect unusually high usage before a monthly bill posts and to consider caps or additional relief for catastrophic residential leaks.
No formal action was taken by the board during the meeting; supervisors advised the PSA representatives to return with proposed policy changes. The transcript records board members saying they expect to revisit the matter in the PSA’s next policy review cycle.
