Lexington council updates utility cutoff rules, approves year-end budget amendments and $300,000 Columbia Gas appropriation

LEXINGTON, Va. — The Lexington City Council on Oct. 13 adopted an ordinance revising the city’s procedures for discontinuing utility service for nonpayment, approved year‑end budget amendments and accepted a $300,000 contribution from Columbia Gas to be used for paving and a temporary increase in Main Street Lexington’s line of credit.

The utility ordinance, labeled 2025‑06, was presented to the council as a housekeeping update to bring local code “into compliance with changes to state statute,” the city manager said during the public hearing. The council approved the measure unanimously after a public comment from a resident who said unresolved billing and underground infrastructure problems had caused repeated high water bills at her home.

The utility changes include a new prohibition on disconnecting water service when the weather forecast predicts a high of 93 degrees Fahrenheit or higher; the city manager said the practical effect is to wait until a high‑temperature trend is over rather than making single‑day cutoff decisions. The ordinance also requires the city to publish disconnect information in English and Spanish and expands options for property owners to make tenants responsible for service in some cases.

Resident Dawn Mays Johnson addressed the council during the public hearing on the utility ordinance, describing a nearly fourfold increase in charges at her address (from typical monthly bills of $50–$60 to as high as $195) and telling the council she has made repeated requests for underground inspection. “Public Works later informed…