NATCHEZ, Miss. – About 300 Adams County residents hit by high water bills could see relief soon, said Mississippi Public Service Commissioner Wayne Carr.
Meeting today with the Morgantown area residents and Adams County supervisors, Carr said the commission is building a case that the private water distribution company is overcharging them.
“If we prove our case, they would have to reimburse their customers,” Carr said.
“It sounds like help is on the way for these folks,” Adams County Supervisor Kevin Wilson said in the county boardroom filled with disgruntled customers of Great River Utility Operating Co.
Since the Missouri-based company two years ago bought the private water system that serves residents just beyond the Natchez city limits, their monthly bills have jumped to a flat $107. This is what all customers must pay regardless of how little water they use. Previous bills were around $50 a month, according to residents speaking at today’s public hearing.
A Great River representative attending the meeting said the PSC allowed the increase, but Carr said that was last year before the new three-member commission took office in January.
“We are working as hard as we can to get these rates down,” Carr said.
The state commission regulates how much private electric and water utilities can charge their customers.
The $107 charged across the board monthly to Great River’s Adams County customers is based on them using 2,000 gallons of water a month, according to company representative Aaron Silas, director of regulatory operations. He said the national monthly average per household is 3,000 gallons.
Morgantown residents have been complaining to county and state officials about the recent rate increases, poor water quality, low water pressure and other complications they blame on Great River.
While the city-owned Natchez Water Works supplies the water, Great River owns and maintains the lines and other water operations for the Morgantown neighborhoods.
Great River water customers’ meters are being tested to determine their accuracy and to be replaced if needed so future bills can be based on water amounts used at lower costs, said Silas, who joined Carr at the public forum conducted by the Adams County Board of Supervisors for residents to get information and answers.
Silas stressed that his company wants to hear feedback from its customers and respond to their concerns. Great River, he said, is willing to reimburse customers if deemed justified or required for overcharges or other complications the company has caused.
Great River Utility Operating Co. is part of Central States Water Resources, a corporation that owns water and wastewater operating companies in 11 states. It has 16 in Mississippi serving about 20,000 customers.
When asked by Wilson, Silas said Great River would be willing to sell its Adams County operations. The Natchez Water Works could be a likely buyer, according to Wilson, who’s president of the Adams County Board of Supervisors.
Carr noted the PSC has received many complaints about Great River’s services throughout Mississippi.
The Mississippi Public Service Commission’s next scheduled meeting is Nov. 4, 10 a.m., at the Woolfolk State Office Building in Jackson. The meeting will be broadcast live at www.psc.ms.gov/webcast
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