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Middletown WPCA reviews finances and collections as staff flags meter failures and back-billing
Summary
Staff presented April fund balances showing positive year-over-year differentials, described attorney-driven collections that brought in payments, and reported multiple meters with zero or low readings that prompted large back-bills; board members pressed for clearer reporting and a remaining-balance column for collections.
The Middletown WPCA reviewed its April 2026 fund balances and collections report and spent substantial time on longstanding delinquencies, meter failures and back-billing.
Staff reported a water fund balance of roughly $3.24 million as of April and a cash balance near $3.00 million for May 2026, and said total water revenues for the period were about $4.00 million. Staff attributed a year-over-year positive differential (about $986,870) to stronger collections, loan repayments and a large institutional payment the department received.
The collections report showed attorney-assisted recoveries and a set of payments totaling roughly $181,842 over the reporting period. Board members pressed staff on how accounts were selected for collection and urged a clearer breakout of remaining balances and a "remaining balance" column to show what is still owed after partial payments.
A major operational concern came from staff reports of several meters that registered zero or unusually low consumption — including some school meters and large commercial meters. Staff said they went back up to 12 months and calculated averages to issue corrected bills; one example cited was a back-bill in excess of six figures. "We found a lot of zeros, no consumption... so I went back 12 months, calculated the monthly average, and said you owe us this for the past 12 months," staff said.
Board members asked for clearer accounting and suggested forensic review for older, high-dollar accounts; staff committed to providing separated water and sewer breakouts and to adding the remaining-balance column to future reports. The board also discussed police traffic-control billing and differential rates for nonprofits and city departments and asked staff to clarify how those collections and reimbursements flow through city accounting.
The board did not take a final vote on changes to collection policy but instructed staff to provide additional reporting and to continue work on meter replacements and back-billing follow-up.
