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Council moves to develop snowbird shut-off policy and transition plan for monthly billing
Summary
Council directed staff to prepare a resolution and fee schedule for seasonal "snowbird" water shut-offs and to draft a transition plan to monthly water billing, with a presentation and resolution planned for October. Members discussed fees, contingency charges, and customer assistance during the transition.
Council revisited winter "snowbird" water shut-offs and the move from quarterly to monthly water billing. Council members said there is currently no written policy for seasonal shut-offs; staff said some customers have had water turned off and received no bill under current practice. Members discussed options for handling seasonal shut-offs: keep the existing contingency (monthly readiness) charge while waiving a turn-on fee, or set a fee in the fee schedule for turn-off/turn-on service. Staff said such a change would likely be implemented via the fee schedule or a resolution; council asked staff to place the item on the October agenda as a resolution.
On monthly billing, staff described technical and timing issues tied to converting from quarterly billing. Council discussed issuing the last quarter bill in January and starting monthly billing with an initial phase-in to avoid customers receiving multiple overlapping bills. Members agreed staff should prepare a plan to provide notices, payment-plan options, and a grace approach during the first months of the transition; the council asked for a resolution in October to begin monthly billing in the new year.
Council emphasized that implementation details—exact fees, effective dates, and customer communications—need to be set before the policy change. Staff will return with a proposed resolution and fee schedule for the council to consider in October.
