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Arcola council reviews formal water, sewer delinquency and cutoff policy
Summary
Council and staff outlined a three-step delinquency process for water and sewer customers — delinquent notice after ~30 days, cutoff notice after ~60 days and termination after ~90 days — and discussed reconnection fees, use of deposits, and penalties for illegal hookups.
Council members and city staff spent the workshop discussing a proposed rate order and formal utility policy that would standardize how the city handles unpaid water and sewer bills.
Staff described a step-by-step procedure that would send a delinquent notice after roughly 30 days unpaid, a cutoff notice after a second 30-day period and terminate service if the account remains unpaid 30 days after the cutoff notice. As staff put it, "if payment isn't received within 30 days from then, so now that's 3 months, then MOC will terminate their service" (staff, presenting the proposed policy). The plan includes a $350 reconnection charge for turning service back on and permits the city to recover actual costs for disconnection and reconnection.
Council members also pressed staff about deposits and accounting. One council member asked whether deposits would be applied to delinquent balances; staff said MOC is compiling a list of deposits so the city can audit them. A resident recommended color-coded notices to make severity clearer; staff said the policy language would make the procedure clear in writing so customers know what to expect.
The council additionally discussed a lenient approach for sewer-only accounts because the monthly bills are low; staff warned that digging and capping a sewer-only connection could cost hundreds to about $1,000 to remedy and that the policy would allow recovery of those costs from the customer. A motion was requested to add language addressing illegal connections and higher renter deposits to the policy; staff said the existing agenda language is broad enough and the additions could be taken up at the next action meeting or after executive-session review with legal staff.
No formal vote on the utility policy was recorded in the transcript; council members asked staff to prepare final language and follow up after the executive-session review.
