Residents press Smithsburg council over unexplained high water charges; town to monitor lines and accelerate AMI plans

Smithsburg — Multiple residents told the Mayor and Council on Feb. 3 that they received unusually high water‑use readings spanning short multi‑day periods and asked the town for relief and better notification when high use occurs.

Jonathan Davis displayed a usage graph and said his household recorded roughly 11,474 gallons over a multi‑day peak that amounted to about $141.36; he asked for consideration of an exception and for high‑usage notifications. Davis said the town replaced a meter in December after he reported a leak and that the new meter may have resolved some problems.

A second resident, Emily (Emma Lou), said she has experienced similar high peaks twice since the new meters/configuration were installed and urged the town to check the meter-reading equipment. Residents described using a customer device (Flume) to cross‑check readings; town staff agreed that the Flume gives earlier alerts and recommended customers use it as an interim protection.

Town utility staff explained that current billing is read monthly and that the town lacks daily automatic alerts at present. Staff said the planned Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) project has completed site surveys and will provide near‑real‑time alerts once installed; in the meantime staff committed to monthly monitoring and to reviewing the specific addresses raised at the meeting.

Why it matters: Repeated unexplained high bills can be a financial strain on households and raise questions about meter accuracy, leak detection, and billing procedures. Council and staff discussed the limits of current ordinance language for granting billing exceptions and the potential creation of an appeals process for future disputes.

Next steps: Utility staff will continue monthly monitoring at the addresses raised, investigate meter and flume data, and provide an update as the AMI rollout proceeds.