Committee reviews draft leak-adjustment form to allow limited sewer credits

The Finance & Economic Development Committee reviewed a draft leak-adjustment request form on Aug. 11 that would create a formal process for residents to request credits to their sewer charges when a water leak discharged outside the sanitary sewer system.

Staff presented a form modeled on other Ohio communities. The proposal would create a written request and an internal review process. Staff said clear cases where water did not enter the sanitary system (for example, water visibly discharging to a ditch) would qualify for a sewer credit, subject to a cap; staff referenced a cap of up to 10,000 gallons during the discussion (one speaker noted 20,000 gallons as an alternative figure in the draft examples). Staff emphasized the proposed credit would apply only to sewer charges — not to water consumption paid by the customer — when the water did not enter the sanitary treatment system.

The committee discussed common scenarios that could complicate credit decisions: running toilets and other fixtures that discharge into the sanitary system (which would not qualify), private-service-line breaks that are not metered, water leaking into crawl spaces or basements where it is difficult to verify the final discharge path, and yard drains or storm connections that could route water away from the sanitary system. Staff told the committee they had vetted the draft internally; the water supervisor and utility billing supervisor had tested the form using a real example, and the administrator and law director had reviewed the concept.

Committee members said the process could provide goodwill to residents and would likely apply in only a handful of cases each year. One committee member recalled a past private-service failure that produced an unusually large bill (about $11,000) and noted that those unmetered private- line breaks were a separate issue from the meter-recorded leaks this form is meant to address.

Staff and the committee agreed the proposed form could be implemented under existing administrative authority (ordinance No. 63-22 authorizes the administrator to set utility-billing policy), so no council ordinance change is required at this time. The committee did not take a formal vote; members asked staff to retain flexibility to revise the form as edge cases arise and to document procedures staff will follow when investigating requests.