Owens Cross Roads officials explain franchise fee on utility bills; council moves to executive session on pending litigation

City staff and the mayor addressed resident concerns on Jan. 27, 2025, about a franchise-fee line appearing on utility bills for customers in Owens Cross Roads, and the council later moved into an executive session to receive privileged legal advice about pending litigation.

A staff member explained that the franchise fee is paid by Huntsville Utilities to the city for the use of city right-of-way to run power lines, gas lines and similar infrastructure, and that Huntsville Utilities may choose to pass that cost to its customers. “The city did not ask council utilities to bill the residents,” the staff member said, adding that the charge shown on a customer statement is handled by Huntsville Utilities and that the city does not have the ability to remove that charge from a customer’s bill.

Officials said they have posted a detailed breakdown on the city website and offered a point of contact at Huntsville Utilities for residents with billing questions. City Attorney Jarvin and city staff said they would provide contact details and that staff are available to help direct residents to the utility’s representative if further questions remain.

Separately, the city attorney informed the council there is pending litigation concerning business/pathway matters in the municipality and recommended adjourning to executive session to obtain legal advice. The council then voted unanimously to enter executive session; the regular public session was adjourned and not scheduled to resume that night.

Residents seeking more detail were directed to the city’s posted materials and to contact city staff or the identified Huntsville Utilities representative for billing-specific disputes.