Date: Fri 03-Jul-1998

Publication: Bee

Author: ANDYG

Quick Words:

sewers-billing-schedule

Full Text:

Town Changes Billing Schedule For Sewer Capital Costs

BY ANDREW GOROSKO

The town will alter its planned billing schedule for the repayment of sewer

system capital costs. As a result, property owners in the sewer district will

receive one annual sewer assessment bill instead of quarterly assessment

bills.

Typically, residential property owners have sewer assessment bills of about

$600 per year, including principal and government-subsidized interest at a

rate of two percent per year.

During the first year of sewer system operations, that charge had been broken

into four sewer assessment payments of approximately $150 quarterly.

In the future, the $600 residential bill will be levied annually, based on the

town attorney's and town bond counsel's reinterpretation of applicable state

law, according to Fred Hurley, the town public works director.

Charges levied for sewer system usage will continue to be billed quarterly, Mr

Hurley said. Those bills are based on water meter readings. The town plans to

post the sewer usage bills in July, September, January and April.

The last of the quarterly sewer assessment bills for the sewer system's first

year of operations will be mailed to property owners in the sewer district

within the next couple of weeks and be due by August 15, Mr Hurley said.

Following that last quarterly sewer assessment billing, future annual sewer

assessments will be due by August 15 until the 20-year term of sewer system

financing is complete.

The date August 15 thus becomes the billing reference point for the sewer

system capital costs. August 15 is the date after which penalty fees are

levied if sewer assessments remain unpaid.

Legal notices of the change in the sewer assessment billing schedule will be

published in the July 3 and July 10 editions of The Newtown Bee .

Sewer Assessment

The sewer assessment levied against the typical single-family residential

property is $9,900. The sewer assessment may be paid off in a lump sum by

sewer district property owners at any time during the 20-year period.

Non-residential properties generally have higher sewer assessments than

residential properties. Some highly-assessed, non-residential properties, such

as large shopping centers, have assessments of approximately $500,000. The

owners of those properties will be required to make annual sewer assessment

payments of approximately $30,000, including principal and interest.

Mr Hurley explained that Water Pollution Control Authority (WPCA) members

initially opted to have property owners pay their sewer assessments on a

quarterly basis to make it easier for the average property owner to pay the

sewer assessments on time. However, because state law doesn't allow such

flexibility in the repayment of sewer system capital costs, annual bills must

be issued by the town, Mr Hurley said.