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Council committee approves $4.6 million reappropriation to cover PWSA charges for 2024
Summary
Council advanced a resolution to reappropriate $4,600,000 to the Department of Public Works to pay 2024 Pittsburgh water service costs in 2025. CFO Patrick Cornell explained the annual 'true up' process with Pittsburgh Water leads to timing issues that require one-year double payment to transition to a current-year payment structure.
The Finance and Law Committee on Jan. 8 recommended approval of Bill 1372, a resolution authorizing the reappropriation of $4,600,000 from the Department of Finance to the Department of Public Works to pay for Pittsburgh water service costs incurred in 2024 but payable in 2025.
Patrick Cornell, chief financial officer, and council members described a longstanding "true up" arrangement with Pittsburgh Water whereby the city reconciles actual water and wastewater usage and costs annually. Cornell said the structure evolved from earlier arrangements when the city and the water authority exchanged lump-sum estimates; the true-up now reconciles differences at year end. "At the beginning of that relationship, we actually received monies from Pittsburgh Water every year because our pension costs were more than their water costs... That has slowly changed. We owe them money," Cornell said.
Cornell explained the reappropriation is intended to avoid paying 2024 service from the 2024 budget after the books closed and to move toward a payment structure that aligns service year and budget year. The committee recorded an affirmative recommendation; the recorded vote line shows the committee in favor. The committee discussed steps to move to quarterly or monthly billing and to reduce clerical burdens on staff and PWSA.
The resolution will proceed to the full council for final consideration.
