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Southfield presents annual water leak relief report; DPW details four assistance programs
Summary
Public Works Director Abdul presented the city’s annual water leak relief report and summarized four programs available to Southfield residents and businesses, including the city’s own one‑time Water Leak Relief Program and regional assistance programs administered by the Great Lakes Water Authority, United Way and county/state programs.
Southfield’s Public Works Department presented its annual water leak relief report on Sept. 15, outlining the city’s one‑time Water Leak Relief Program for residential and commercial customers and three additional assistance programs available to residents.
Public Works Director Abdul said the city’s water leak relief program, authorized by the council on Jan. 22, 2018, allows customers who notify DPW within 30 days and submit proof of repair to receive an adjustment: up to half of the two highest consecutive bills attributable to a leak, applied one time per account. Abdul said the program has helped 530 residential customers and 38 commercial customers since 2018 and that the total relief provided has been about $568,000.
Abdul outlined three additional programs that serve residents: the Great Lakes Water Authority’s Residential Assistance Program (RAP), administered locally by United Way for Southeastern Michigan; Oakland County’s Hardship Assistance Program (HAP), also administered by United Way; and the Michigan Water Assistance (My Water) program for efficiency and repairs. Abdul said RAP provides customized bill credits for households at or below 200% of the federal poverty level and offers support with past due bills and water audits; HAP generally serves households at or below 300% of the poverty level and can cover past due balances or plumbing repairs; and My Water provides up to $2,500 per household for bills, repairs or efficiency work when accepting applications.
Council members asked programmatic and operational questions. Councilman Hicks asked whether customers can receive relief more than once, including for separate leaks or infrastructure failures; Abdul said the city’s program is currently one‑time only but noted other municipalities have different policies. Councilman Brightwell asked for the dollar thresholds corresponding to 200% of the federal poverty level; Abdul explained amounts vary by household size and gave examples. Councilwoman Hogue and others asked for the presentation slides to be shared with council and for the administration to increase outreach; Abdul said city staff will make the information more prominent on the city website and can provide copies of the PowerPoint.
The annual report for the water leak relief program was placed on the consent agenda and approved as part of consent items A–F later in the meeting.
