Thursday, December 09, 1999
Sewer rates to soar
BY DAN KLEPAL
The Cincinnati Enquirer
Hamilton County residents will be flushing more money than ever down the toilet next year.
Cincinnati City Manager John Shirey has recommended a 14 percent rate hike for the Metropolitan Sewer District over the next 12 months, while Hamilton County Administrator David Krings says MSD might be able to get by with a 12 percent increase.
Either way, it will be the largest such raise since 1993, when the rates went up 20 percent.
At an additional 12 percent, the average user will spend about $31.50 more every year.
“We'd have to take on less debt, bring new employees on slower than we might like,” said Al Landis, MSD comptroller. “But the 12 percent (increase) will work.”
There were increases of 6 percent in 1995 and 4 percent in 1996, and no rate increases since then.
The city is considered the operator of MSD, while the county manages the organization and therefore has final say over its budget.
According to a 1968 agree ment between the two, Cincinnati officials are supposed to have MSD funding recommendations to county commissioners in mid-September.
Mr. Krings said he has yet to receive those recommendations, so he made a few of his own to county commissioners on Wednesday.
In addition to the 12 percent rate hike, Mr. Krings recommends:
• No money be approved for the design or construction of any new projects in 2000 until MSD comes up with a list of
priority projects and the commissioners approve it.
• Issue debt for longer periods of time. Traditionally, MSD has issued bonds for 14 to 17 years, and none longer than 20 years.
• Create a city/county committee to explore the future borrowing capacity and other issues concerning MSD's future.
County Commissioner Bob Bedinghaus said the city's recommendations stayed bottled up in the Public Works Committee for political reasons. Councilman Todd Portune, who was re-elected last month, was chairman of that committee.
Mr. Portune said that accusation is nonsense. He said the city's budget will be approved next Wednesday, and that will include the recommendations for MSD's budget.
“The city, by law, can't approve rate increases until after holding public hearings,” Mr. Portune said. “And we had begun to ask questions about MSD and some of the planned dollars for capital improvements.
“We don't see it (the delay) as a big deal. It's all wrapped into the budget deliberation the city is doing.”
Mr. Krings said it is a big deal. The city's delay will mean consumers will pay a higher rate in the coming year, he said.
“If we could have dealt with this back in August, the rate increase would have been less over a longer period of time,” he said.
Commission President Tom Neyer asked if smaller rate increases could be implemented over a longer period of time.
County staff will consider all the options in the coming weeks and would like to have a rate increase in place by Feb. 1.
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