2006-04-06 Cost of Government Commission Minutes

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Upon questioning by Mr. Joseph, Ms. Bauman explained that the sewer was tied to water by law, before the ordinance changed things. Whoever applied was who got billed, and they had to wait for information from the Water Supply Department. Mr. Joseph said it would make good sense, then, to tie the water bill and sewer bill together. He asked if there is a delinquent fee assessed if the sewer bill is not paid, and Ms. Bauman said that as of October, 2005, they went from a one -time 10% penalty to a monthly interest charge of 1.5% per month. Mr. Joseph asked for a rough estimate of the amount of delinquent customers and businesses, and Ms. Bauman estimated that it was in the hundreds. She said certain people generally ignore bills, and what do you do? You cannot shut off their water or sewer. The only hammer the DEM had was to send the delinquent customers to a collection agency so it would show up on their credit report. The Chair asked when the UPW contract was to expire, and Mr. Ho said they are on a two -year cycle. Ms. Bell said there are different bargaining units, so she is not certain. (Ms. Bell had to leave the meeting at 11:00 a.m. to attend another commitment.) Ms. Cushnie asked what the DEM's leverage is now with the new billing. Ms. Bauman explained that owners are now responsible for the bill. If they want a tenant to pay, the owner needs to sign a form and submit a request to the DEM in writing. If the tenant becomes delinquent, the owner will get a copy of the notice. If it gets to a point where the County puts a lien, they will do so and at some point may be able to recoup, when the property sells. That is the only hammer the DEM has right now. Ms. Cushnie asked what the rate is like in other counties, which do have the ability to turn off the water. Ms. Bauman said she would have to research that. Ms. Nicholson asked what the DEM's philosophy is about people being on catchment versus getting County water and sewer, etc. Is it the DEM's goal to ultimately have catchment and septic tank customers on County water and sewer systems? Mr. Ho said he could speak to the wasterwater /sewer side of it. The functions of getting water to residents are handled purely by the Water Supply Department. He explained that the DEM has two sewer systems, one in Kona and one in Hilo. Because of the large capacity cesspool ban, they are now starting to expand into Honokaa, Naalehu, and Pahala. They will be adding two more small systems to Kona that are outside the present service area. He said it is a mandate to get everybody hooked up to the existing service area, but it is very expensive and highly intensive because of the widespread population. They may have to use several hundred feet of sewer pipe to reach just one customer, and this is what has kept them from sewering everything. If someone is in their service area, they would like them to hook up, as it would keep the groundwater and coastal waters cleaner. That was the mandate when they got the grants to build the treatment plans. The issue of whether they can extend to rural areas is difficult. It would not be financially prudent for the County to go there until the population can sustain the capital- intensive 9