Public Works Commission approves FY27 water and sewer rate schedules, defers smart‑meter opt‑out fee for one year

The Concord Public Works Commission voted May 13 to adopt the town's proposed water and sewer rate schedules for fiscal 2027 while deferring a decision on the proposed AMI (advanced metering infrastructure) opt‑out fees for one year.

The vote approved the rates “as presented and described” in the director's memorandum with one exception: the commission moved to defer W‑13, the opt‑out application and fee schedule, so staff can collect additional data and report back. The motion passed 4–1, with one commissioner recorded as abstaining.

Public‑works staff and the water‑sewer superintendent described the broader rate framework that underlies the schedules. The superintendent said the town is implementing a multiyear plan for sewer rates that includes a 5% annual increase in the sewer rate (this meeting reflected year two of that plan) and continued multi‑year increases on the water side tied to regulatory requirements and capital needs. “Last year we did a 5% rate increase per year, and this year we're in another 5% rate increase,” the superintendent said while reviewing the financial forecasts used to justify the proposals.

The commission also addressed the sewer improvement fee (SIF), the one‑time charge applied to new hookups to reflect the cost of added capacity. Staff recommended increasing the SIF from about $40.07 per gallon to $60 per gallon using the town's existing valuation method adjusted for inflation. The director said the $60 figure uses the 2013 methodology adjusted for current costs; staff added that a full expansion scenario tied to adding roughly 155,000 gallons per day of capacity could produce a much higher per‑gallon value (a number discussed in the presentation was about $126/gal in that scenario).

Staff noted the town has SIF reserves (described in the meeting as roughly $4–5 million) but emphasized that those funds represent only a portion of the capital cost of adding capacity. The business manager reported recent SIF receipts in the last two years — $165,000 in 2024 and $143,000 in 2025 — and read an unclear year‑to‑date figure in the transcript; staff said they will supply clearer, itemized accounting to the commission.

Residents raised objections to parts of the proposed rate schedule, but the most sustained public concern focused on the proposed AMI opt‑out fee. Several speakers described privacy, health and equity concerns and called the proposed initial equipment charge and annual read cost “punitive.” One resident, Gail Hyer, read a prepared statement saying the opt‑out structure would be unaffordable for some and urged a lower installation fee, lower monthly reads, quarterly reads or waivers for residents with documented medical need. Hyer said the numbers she had seen indicated a proposed $500 installation cost and roughly $300 per year for manual reading, calling those figures punitive.

Staff replied that the $500 cited in the meeting represents the additional equipment cost for a manual‑read device the vendor requires and that the proposed monthly manual‑read service was $25 (i.e., about $300/year) in the schedule; staff also said the town currently has about 45 customers who have opted out of electric AMI service and that the water‑division opt‑out uptake is uncertain until rollout completes.

Commissioners and staff agreed to adopt the overall rate schedules now to meet annual timing requirements while deferring the W‑13 opt‑out fees for one year so the town can gather actual cost and participation data, consider lower or phased fees, and work through equity and waiver options. Staff noted that rates formally change only once per year, so the deferral will allow the commission time to refine language and prepare a clear policy recommendation to voters and affected customers.

The commission agreed to return the opt‑out fee question to a future agenda after staff reports back with clearer cost accounting and a proposed implementation/waiver framework.