If you haven’t noticed it, the city of Monroe has been silently increasing the costs of water for residents and businesses, even though its cost to produce the water has not increased significantly.
In 2018, the Mayo administration passed an ordinance that calls for automatic increases in water rates each year beginning in 2019. When fully implemented, citizens would pay 75 percent more for water starting in 2019 and it would continue to rise each year automatically without a review from the council.
This publication warned that the water and sewerage rate increase would amount to a never-ending “stealth” tax that would increase forever, even if costs did not increase.
Those who would be affected most would be city’s poor responded. They came to council hearings, posted on social media, and begged council members not to introduce the increases.
Most agreed that there should be increases only if city costs to produce water increased. They opposed automatic increases without council review.
For former Mayor James Earl Mayo, the water rate increases were needed to keep the city in the black and to fund other projects on his agenda.
In the end, councilwoman Juanita Woods broke from other Southside council members and voted for the increases. Her vote gave former Mayor Mayo the majority he needed, and the “forever” tax went into effect.
This May, as it did for each year since 2020, the city sent residents a notice in their water bills announcing an automatic water and sewer rate increase, effective the first day of the city’s fiscal year which is May 1. The increase references the March 27, 2018 vote of the city council authorizing the increases tied to ”Consumer Price Index” increases.
Since the Consumer Price Index measures the cost of consumer items such as bread, meat, and gasoline, it usually increases every year. Guaranteed. The old method that Mayo dumped, used the “Producer Price Index” which only increased if the actual cost of producing water increased.
Campaigning for election in 2020, Mayor Oliver Ellis pledged publically to urge the repeal of all policies and ordinances that increase rates and fees without council review. Since his election, Mayor Ellis has not made any changes in the automatic fee increases imposed by Mayo.
Similarly, District 5 councilwoman Kema Dawson-Robinson, while campaigning, said she thought increases should have council review before being imposed. On March 6, 2020, she said, “The citizens have every right to be heard. I would vote to review the amount of the automatic increase and the reasoning prior to its implementation.” Since her election, she has not pushed for a review of the automatic increases as she promised.
Residents are experiencing increases at the gas pump, electricity costs have skyrocketed, food costs, and the general cost of just about everything has risen to nearly unbearable totals.
It would be wise of the city, (not to mention good politics) to revisit its “forever” water and sewerage rate increase and revise the ordinance.
The revised ordinance should tie future increases to the “Producer Price Index” (Actual costs) and not the consumer price index. In addition, any increase in rates should be approved by the Monroe City Council before implementation.
Among the present city council members, voters can thank councilwomen: Juanita Woods and Gretchen Ezernak for the unnecessary increases.
Mayor Ellis and councilwoman Dawson-Robinson, have not kept their promises to reverse policies that allow automatic increases without council review. They should keep their promises.
When we look at the “forever” increase on our water bills, we can also thank former Mayor Mayo and former councilman Jay Marx.
Unless the city council does something about it, we’re stuck with Mayo’s “forever” water rate increase, forever.
