PUBLIC HEARING NOTICE
A public hearing will be held on May 9, 2019, at 6:00 PM at City Hall to discuss a possible increase in water rates to help make the water system self-supporting.
The work session held on April 4th was a presentation by Bill Powell of Georgia Rural Water Association. Mr. Powell previously presented the Town with a Business Plan for the water system and has worked on a rate structure that would get us to an anticipated break-even point. The GRWA proposed rate structure is being included with this notice for your review and comments in case you are unable to attend the public hearing in May.
The General Fund of the Town currently uses taxpayer money to subsidize the Water System. The Water Fund is not currently bringing in enough water revenue to pay the expenses for operations and maintenance of the system. We are anticipating a loss of $54,786 this year in the Water Fund, and there were losses of $58,161 in 2017, $57,207 in 2016, $56,454 in 2015, $48,992 in 2014, $46,435 in 2013 and $45,605 in 2012. The Town has been told that loan/grant money will not be made available for the water system until it is self-supporting and no longer being subsidized by the General Fund.
A rate increase is something that none of us want, but we must explore our options to make sure we are able to operate and maintain the system we have in place, plan for the replacement of aging meters and infrastructure when necessary, and put ourselves in a competitive position for leveraging available grant money for system improvements in the future. Taxpayers are currently covering the majority of the costs associated with the water system, and many of those taxpayers are not water customers. The Mayor and Council want to hear from everyone, whether you are a water customer or not.
Please mark your calendars for 6:00 PM on May 9th to attend the Public Hearing.
To be added to the website notification e-mail list for new postings, meeting notices and minutes, please call city hall at 706.754.6040 or email clerk@tallulahfallsga.gov. Visit the website at www.tallulahfallsga.gov
water business planUpcoming-Public-Hearing-Agenda