Sanitary board to add water shut-off hearing form and clarifies $33 Indiana American Water charge is a passthrough

The Sanitary Board agreed April 15 to add a water shut-off hearing-request form to its customer notices and to circulate payment-agreement and appeal forms for customers who are behind on bills. Gina, the sanitary clerk, described the three forms and recommended the hearing-request language be included with shut-off notices so customers can request a hearing that would be decided at the board meeting cycle.

Gina explained the town's monthly billing and shut-off timeline: notices are prepared at the start of the billing cycle and mailed on green paper, customers have until the third Friday to pay, and unpaid accounts are sent to Indiana American for shut-off action in the fourth week. Frankly, the hearing-request procedure is designed so the board can act at its third-Wednesday meeting before field shut-offs occur.

Gina and the board also clarified that a $33 charge shown on shut-off notices is assessed by Indiana American Water and passed through to the customer; the town does not directly charge that line item and does not have authority to unilaterally waive the utility's fee. The board advised customers to contact Indiana American Water for disputes specific to that $33 charge, while the town can consider appeals for town-assessed fees via the appeal form.

The board also approved waiving a $245 late fee for account #1678 after staff reported the customer had been billed the wrong amount earlier in the year. Members recommended that customers moving mid-year seek resolution during closing or file a formal appeal if refunds are not handled by the title company.

Next steps: staff will attach the hearing-request form to shut-off notices, circulate draft payment-agreement language for future consideration, and process appeals as required.