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Victoria council moves forward with utility billing schedule change to address meter-data limits
Summary
Council approved a change to the town's utility billing schedule after staff said current bills reflect a 45-day lag while newer meters retain about 30 days of readings; the change aims to improve leak detection and billing accuracy, with implementation starting July 2025.
The Town Council of Victoria on March 11, 2025, voted to implement a change to the town's utility billing schedule to address data-storage limits on newer meters and reduce the effective lag between meter reads and billing.
Town Manager Rodney Newton said the town's current billing cycle produces bills that are roughly 45 days after a meter reading; newer meters typically store about 30 days of readings, which creates gaps that complicate leak detection and billing adjustments. He said the proposed approach reads meters on June 25 and transitions to mailing bills on the 1st of each month starting in July 2025, with a customer notification letter sent in advance.
Councilmember Chris Gill moved to proceed with the billing-change plan and Councilmember Johnnie Brame seconded; the motion carried. Town staff told council that customers will have options for payment timing (including paying over 12 months or in one lump sum where applicable) under the new schedule.
The change is intended to produce more frequent overlapping reads and improve the town's ability to identify high readings and probable leaks. Town Manager Newton said letters explaining the change were mailed to customers in advance of implementation.
