Council introduces water, sewer and garbage fee increases and millage adjustments; budget adoption tabled

The Hammond City Council on June 10 introduced a package of fiscal measures that would raise utility and garbage rates and adopt adjusted millage rates required by state reassessment. Council also tabled final adoption of the FY2025-26 budget to June 24.

City staff presented proposed water and sewer rate adjustments based on a state-directed rate study. The staff summary showed proposed inside-city water charges rising from $1.50 per 1,000 gallons to $2.89 per 1,000 gallons and sewer from $3.00 to $5.07 per 1,000 gallons. For outside-city customers, water would rise from $3.00 to $5.78 per 1,000 gallons and sewer from $6.00 to $10.14 per 1,000 gallons. Staff said the study showed Hammond’s rates had not been adjusted since roughly 2017 and that increases were needed to sustain the water and sewer system.

In a separate introduction, the council considered increasing the monthly garbage collection fee from $14.08 to $23.00, an $8.92 per month increase. City staff said the current fee subsidizes sanitation service by roughly $800,000 a year and argued the proposed increase would better align user fees with actual costs. Staff indicated the proposed changes are presented as introductions; final action would follow a public hearing at a subsequent meeting.

Council also introduced ordinances to adopt adjusted millage rates that reflect state reassessment. Staff explained the state-adjusted rates (8.73 mills, 9.65 mills and 1.93 mills) total about 20.131 mills and that the city’s voter-approved local rates would bring the 2025 levy to about 21.04 mills. Introductions carried; public hearings were scheduled as part of the adoption process.

Council deferred final adoption of the city budget for fiscal year 2025-26 until the June 24 meeting. The mayor and staff said they will meet with the council and administration before that date to resolve outstanding items.

Public comment on the introductions raised operational issues. Resident David Hyde told council his neighbor is repeatedly emptying portable-toilet waste and “flushing porta sonds next door to me in your storm drains,” saying the smell has left his neighborhood uninhabitable. City staff said code enforcement and state environmental authorities (DEQ) had been notified and that enforcement requires catching the act or finding residue; staff indicated they were investigating and requested photographic evidence from the resident.

Council also authorized a renewal of the Mission Communications monitoring contract for water and sewer systems in the amount of $26,108 and authorized a contract extension with Peregrine Corporation for utility billing services with an approximate annual cost that includes postage and billing of about $60,060; council members discussed plans to increase online billing adoption to reduce postage costs. The Peregrine resolution passed with an abstention; Mission Communications renewal passed unanimously among voting members.

Council members asked staff to provide more detail about proposed fee structures for seniors and fixed-income residents and to return with analyses showing the fiscal impact on the city budget. Staff said the proposed increases were designed to be usage-based so lower-usage households (including many single seniors) would pay less than larger households.

No final rate or fee increase was adopted at the June 10 meeting; the introductions and contract authorizations set the items for follow-up public hearings and administrative steps.