Baltimore oversight panel hears WACA report as staff and system gaps slow dispute processing

Council President Z. Cohen on Friday convened the first meeting of Baltimore City Council's oversight committee for the Office of Water Advocacy and Customer Appeals (WACA), approving her own nomination as chair and pressing the new office and the Department of Public Works (DPW) on backlogs, data access and implementation of earlier recommendations.

WACA Chief R. Anthony Mills told the committee the office, which opened intake in September 2023, has received 371 disputes, with 72 active cases and 51 closed. "The total amount to date of the determinations made is $1,310,000.00; that will be returned to customer accounts," Mills said, and added the value of cases not granted is roughly $700,000 to $750,000. He cautioned that large adjustments often reflect backdating and normalization of bills rather than immediate cash refunds.

Why it matters: The office was created by the Water Equity and Accountability Act to provide a neutral intermediary to investigate billing disputes, produce determinations grounded in city code and guide customers through appeal steps. Committee members said WACA's work matters as water and sewer rates rise and affordability concerns grow across Baltimore.

Mills described a tiered triage system: Tier 1 investigations aim for completion in about three weeks, Tier 2 may take three to four months, and Tier 3 can exceed four months. He said some high-dollar "outlier" cases drove the large…