Like Water? WSSC Says Pay Up

UPPER MARLBORO, Md. -- Do you like to drink water?  Be prepared to pay more for that luxury in Montgomery and Prince George's counties.

The water and sewer board for both counties sent a 9 percent rate hike to county leaders on Wednesday, which officials say is needed to keep the utility running.

But the Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission warned Montgomery and Prince George's counties, which must approve the increase, that the rate hike would not fund the overhaul of decaying pipelines.

The two county councils must approve the increase in May as part of the WSSC's proposed $930 million budget for fiscal 2010. Its approval is expected.

The WSSC board would formally adopt the budget in June, and the increase would take effect July 1.

Montgomery commissioner Gene Counihan said commissioners are aware that many ratepayers are dealing with tough times.
"But we also think this is the minimum we can do to ensure safe and reliable water," Counihan said. He said the rate increase wouldn't provide more money to "significantly ramp up" efforts to inspect, repair and replace failing pipes.

The rate hike would add $4.50 to the average monthly residential water bill of $50, WSSC officials said. WSSC provides water and sewer service to some 1.8 million residents of Prince George's and Montgomery counties.

Thousands of WSSC water pipes break every year. The six-member board of commissioners has been criticized for its contentious meetings and inability to get beyond stalemates to hire a permanent general manager or deal with the pipe problem.

There seemed to be little disagreement about a rate increase at Wednesday's meeting.

It would be less than the 14.9 percent that WSSC officials first requested to give "critical proactive maintenance," but more than the 6 percent proposed by the Prince George's County Council.

WSSC officials have sought $75 million from the federal stimulus package for infrastructure renewal, but several commissioners said they don't believe the utility will get that much because of media reports that Maryland is likely to get $123 million for water and sewer projects statewide.

In a related development, Montgomery Executive Isiah Leggett and Prince George's Executive Jack Johnson met in Annapolis late Wednesday to talk about ways to break the WSSC board's yearlong stalemate over hiring a permanent general manager, a spokesman for Leggett said.

"There's no decision per se, but the county executives felt like it was a good meeting and moved the ball forward," said Leggett spokesman Patrick Lacefield. He said the county executives also were involved in talk about the 9 percent rate increase.