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Independent audit finds Gilbert water metering largely accurate; 2.9% of accounts showed anomalies
Summary
Kimley Horn told the council that a six-year audit of ~93,000 water accounts found 97.1% were recording usage accurately; roughly 2.9% of accounts experienced at least one anomaly (averaging ~5 months), driven by multiplier settings, billing codes and rounding errors — staff said affected accounts will be reviewed and corrected.
Kimley Horn engineers presented a data- and field-based audit of Gilbert's water metering and billing systems at the April 7 council meeting, concluding there is no evidence of a systemwide failure but identifying isolated anomalies that deserve correction.
"The good news is 97.1% of all accounts were recording usage and billed accurately during the audit period," said Tyler Kay of Kimley Horn, who led the project team. The audit looked at 93,000 active accounts and analyzed more than 7 million consumption transactions from Jan. 1, 2020, through Dec. 31, 2025.
Kimley Horn found that about 2.9% of accounts experienced at least one misstatement or anomaly during the six-year window. The most common causes were multiplier configuration errors (506 residential instances identified), misapplied billing codes and a small share of rounding or calculation mistakes. Where customers were affected, the firm reported average total overbilling of roughly $125 per affected residential account over the six-year period and average underbilling of about $110 per affected account; when averaged over the typical five-month issue duration cited in the audit, those figures equate to roughly $25 or $22 per month, respectively.
The consultant emphasized that multiplier issues tend to arise from setup, installation or configuration, not meter manufacture, and that targeted fixes and recurring multiplier health checks will reduce future errors. Kimley Horn also tested a statistically representative sample of meters and radios: 451 meters were sent for off-site testing (98% confidence level) and 394 radios were field-tested; most meters and over 99% of radios operated within tolerances. Older meter models were more likely to fall outside tight manufacturing tolerances, the team said.
Finance Director Haku Hansen told the council staff would carefully validate the final report when the remaining lab results are posted and would assess account-level impacts. "Where overbilling occurred, issuing credits or refunds is on the table," Hansen said, adding staff will communicate directly with affected customers and pursue process improvements, including SOP updates and asset-management alignment.
Kimley Horn and the town said the final, full report will be posted at khwatermeter.com after remaining physical meter test results are incorporated; the firm urged residents who still suspect a problem to request a meter efficiency check with the town.
What this means: The audit reassures the town and customers that the metering system is fundamentally sound while identifying manageable, targeted fixes. Residents who believe they were affected should await the final report and the town's account-level review, and may request efficiency checks in the meantime.
Provenance: Presentation and discussion (Kimley Horn): SEG 843–SEG 1670; staff response: SEG 1679–SEG 1869.
