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Council hears update on delayed commercial sewer billing and consultant work
Summary
CFO told council the municipality is two years behind on commercial sewer billing due to system integration and data access issues; consultants have been retained to prepare bills and staff warned some grant awards remain on hold.
Teaneck Township officials told council on April 7 that commercial sewer billing is behind schedule and that consultants were hired to reconcile and prepare bills for a multi‑year backlog.
CFO Issa Abbasi said the project fell behind when the sewer billing process was integrated with the township’s administrative systems during and after the pandemic. "By the time it got done and build out, it was late '23 when that happened," Abbasi said, explaining that data transfers and non‑disclosure agreements with the third‑party utility vendor delayed billing. He said the municipality previously brought in as much as $900,000 in a strong year and that consultants prepare the current commercial billing and data validation work.
Council members asked for the consultant/vendor name and how much the town is paying; staff committed to providing that information. Abbasi also warned council that some anticipated grants are on hold and that grant timing could affect the town’s ability to proceed with certain projects. "One of our grants…we were notified that it's on hold right now," he said, asking department heads not to spend against those funds until further notice.
Councilors requested a follow‑up with vendor details and a schedule for issuing any outstanding bills so the fiscal impact can be quantified before the bond ordinance decisions are finalized.
