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Commissioners defer water/wastewater shutoff‑protections resolution pending data and legal review
Summary
A resolution asking the administration to pause shutoffs and certain payment-plan actions while the Urban League establishes a DeKalb Customer Advocates Office was discussed; county staff and Urban League said they will return with applicant counts, payment-plan data and legal analysis; commissioners deferred the item to Nov. 18 with FAB stop Nov. 10.
Chair Commissioner Ted Terry introduced a resolution asking the administration to implement interim protections against water and sewer shutoffs and to pause the issuance of payment plans while the Urban League of Greater Atlanta stands up a DeKalb Customer Advocates Office to assist low‑income residents.
County and Urban League representatives (Mr. Williams) said the program is recent and that the administration can provide counts of applicants deemed eligible and data on how many payment plans exist or have been reversed. The chair and other commissioners emphasized the need to consider not just the monthly bill but the total monthly obligation when payment plans are included; they asked staff to analyze how payment plans interact with the 4.5% income‑based affordability threshold and whether long‑standing past balances may be time‑barred by statute.
County staff agreed to provide a legal analysis of statutory limits on collecting past utility bills and to include Urban League reporting and payment‑plan statistics at the next FAB meeting. The committee voted to defer the item to the Nov. 18 Board meeting with a FAB stop on Nov. 10 so staff could present data and proposed refinements.
