Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Sewer Fund topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Cosmopolis briefing warns sewer bills could spike; officials urge negotiated, predictable rate
Summary
City finance staff told residents that past late payments to Aberdeen and an expired contract left the sewer fund exposed, averaging ~$288,000 in annual invoices and creating a backlog; officials said negotiating a flat monthly charge and completing a rate study are critical next steps.
Tara, the city's presenter on municipal finances, told residents Oct. 1 that Cosmopolis's contract with Aberdeen for wastewater treatment expired in 2023 and left the city exposed to unpredictable, sometimes delayed bills.
"The contract was based on a really complicated formula," Tara said, and the city had sometimes paid invoices years after the service was provided. She said the five-year average of Aberdeen invoices is about $288,000 and that late billing and slow payments created a large backlog even when year-end fund balances looked healthy.
The nut of the briefing: uncertainty over Aberdeen's next bill and the structure that produced past volatility. Tara said Aberdeen's charges combine a percentage of Cosmopolis's flow with Aberdeen's actual operating, capital and debt costs, a formula that can produce sharp swings when Aberdeen undertakes major capital work. "If Aberdeen says, sorry, Cosmopolis. Your bill's 1,000,000 dollars a year, citizens have to pay for that," she said, cautioning that utilities must be self-sustaining.
City officials said a negotiating posture and a local rate structure are the immediate policy issues. Legal counsel (Chris Coker, city attorney) and staff advised caution about paying invoices that lack an underlying contract. Tara recommended pursuing a flat monthly fee, tied to an index or fixed percentage increases, to make cash-flow and customer rates predictable.
Residents at the workshop asked about how Aberdeen measures flow, whether Cosmopolis has its own meters, and the share of Aberdeen's capital Cosmopolis would be responsible for under past arrangements. Staff said Aberdeen has performed CCTV inspections and that Cosmopolis maintains an MPS flow meter; Aberdeen will upgrade metering to reconcile differences. Officials said past contracts reportedly allocated about 20% of certain capital projects to Cosmopolis, though actual shares can vary.
Officials also highlighted inflow-and-infiltration (I&I) from groundwater and stormwater as a local infrastructure problem that raises flows during storms. The city said a technical team and a sewer committee are examining needed repairs and will work alongside negotiations with Aberdeen.
The briefing closed with staff saying a rate study is underway and that council will need to consider rate adjustments to rebuild reserves and cover both Aberdeen charges and local capital needs. The presenter reminded the public that the mayor requested the historical review to bring the council up to speed and to inform upcoming budget deliberations.
The council moved from the workshop into a short formal meeting that included routine votes; no immediate contract authorization or final rate decisions were made. Officials said negotiations with Aberdeen and the rate study will inform any future formal actions by the council.
