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Grayson County sets July public hearing on rate increase for small grant-fed water system
Summary
The board voted to set a public hearing in July on a proposed water rate increase limited to a small grant-served water system; staff will run a leak survey and provide the customer-impact analysis requested by commissioners.
Grayson County commissioners voted at a May 28 budget workshop to set a public hearing in July on a proposed rate increase that would raise charges for customers on a small, grant-supported water extension so customers are charged roughly what the county pays to deliver water.
Staff told the board the county's water fund has historically operated at a deficit and has required transfers from the general fund — roughly $150,000 in recent years — to cover operations and debt service. The presenter said the county operates three separate public-service-authority (PSA) systems, serving roughly 486 customers countywide, and that one small extension has costs substantially above customer charges.
To reduce losses on that small system, staff recommended adjusting rates to better reflect the county's cost to serve the extension. The presenter said the county will schedule a leak survey through the Virginia Rural Water Association to identify repairable losses before implementing broader rate changes.
A commissioner moved and another seconded to set a July public hearing on the grant-system rate increase; the chair called for a voice vote and the motion passed. Commissioners asked staff to model and report how a $150,000 transfer would translate to a per-customer increase across county systems and to clarify which costs are charged to schools and which are county obligations.
The board did not adopt a rate at the workshop; it set the hearing to collect public comment and review staff-calculated customer impacts.
