Finance committee amends water-rate ordinance, sets $7.48 first-year rate and forwards to full council

The Dartmouth finance committee voted on May 12 to recommend an amended water-rate ordinance to the full City Council, setting the first-year water rate at $7.48 effective July 1, 2026.

Councilors and staff debated a proposed multi-year schedule the director provided, with several members expressing concern that the plan’s later-year increases were steep. Director Eric Arnold presented the schedule and answered committee questions about salary assumptions, project timing and the contract that supports the sewer/water operations. Arnold said the chart and supporting materials should clarify which line items — including salaries and discrete capital projects — drive the longer-term rate projections.

In committee discussion, a councilor proposed reducing the initial increase to ease customer impacts and allow staff to return with more detailed five-year forecasts and per-project breakdowns. "I amend my amendment to $7.48," said Councilor Verma Lewis during the motion to set the first-year rate.

Chair called for a voice vote; committee members responded "aye," and the motion to recommend the ordinance as amended carried. The committee’s action recommends the amended ordinance to the full council, which will vote on the measure at a future full-council meeting.

The committee also discussed billing timing: staff noted changes to a rate on July 1 can create mixed-bill months (residents billed part of a period at one rate and part at another), and the committee asked staff to model billing implications. Members asked for a more detailed five-year projection and for staff to identify which capital projects (and their timing) are driving the larger long-term increases.

Next steps: the committee forwarded the amended ordinance to the full Dartmouth City Council for consideration; the council may re-amend or debate the ordinance at that meeting.