Cleveland council adopts water overage forgiveness policy, effective Jan. 1, 2025

The Cleveland Town Council on Dec. 12 adopted a resolution creating an outreach and overage policy for town culinary water customers, approving relief for a single month of overage charges in cases where a leak or break occurs on the customer—s side of the meter.

The text of the policy says that the town—s current overage rate remains $1.50 per 1,000 gallons for usage over the monthly 10,000-gallon base. Under the resolution, a customer who experiences a leak or break on the customer side of the meter remains responsible for the overage itself but may have one month—s overage charge forgiven after documentation and outreach. The resolution states the policy will be implemented and effective on Jan. 1, 2025.

Council members discussed how the town assesses utility charges and confirmed that the town—s water lines can age and fail, leading to unusually high bills for customers. A council member read the technical language of the resolution to the group and said the resolution included language specifying the leak had to be "on their side" of the meter. Council members moved and seconded the resolution and approved it during the meeting.

The resolution does not change the town—s treatment or transmission-cost structure beyond the stated overage forgiveness mechanism; it makes clear customers remain financially responsible for all overage quantities and that forgiveness applies to a single month's overage under the outreach policy. The council directed staff to circulate the final resolution to council members for signing and to include the effective date in outreach materials to customers.

The council did not specify additional administrative eligibility steps (for example, what documentation a customer must provide) during the meeting; staff said they would provide the finalized form and process to the council for follow-up.