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State Sen. Mary Ann Dunwell urges PSC to hold North Star water operator accountable amid outages and proposed rate hike
Summary
State Sen. Mary Ann Dunwell told the Public Service Commission that North Star residents continue to face tap outages and limited transparency even as the privately owned water system seeks higher rates; she called the proposed usage caps and overage fees “egregious.”
State Sen. Mary Ann Dunwell told the Public Service Commission on Aug. 11 that residents of the privately owned North Star water system have experienced repeated outages and rising restrictions even as the system’s operator seeks another rate increase. Dunwell said constituents report the system “doesn't seem to be fixed” and described household tap outages in recent summers.
Dunwell relayed a constituent’s concern that the operator’s proposed tariff would both reduce monthly allowed gallons and sharply raise the overage price, saying, “a 30% decrease in allowed usage for a 300% price increase seems egregious.” She asked the commission to consider stronger oversight and to press the operator for transparency and meaningful fixes rather than measures that can leave households without water.
Commission staff and commissioners acknowledged the PSC’s regulatory jurisdiction over privately owned community water systems and noted prior settlement steps with North Star; Dunwell urged the commission to move beyond settlement language if residents are continuing to lose reliable service. The public comment was part of the meeting’s opening public‑comment period; the commission took no immediate formal action on the North Star matter during the session.
