Wapa

WAPA Confronts Mounting Billing Complaints in PSC Meeting, Pledges Reforms

Executive Director of the Water and Power Authority Karl Knight has told members of the Public Services Commission that the company is trying to move away from the practice of estimated billing, though a timeline for this was not clear. “There are several reasons why estimates occur, including issues with the billing system, issues with the meters and related equipment,” Mr. Knight said. System failures requiring manual reading plus prevailing legislation which requires meters to be read within 30 days of the previous reading “impacts WAPA’s ability to timely produce bills; considering the already constrained financial resources, as well as practical 30 day billing cycle, WAPA cannot increase the staffing levels or provide the additional vehicles needed to remain compliant,” he explained. These circumstances lead to increased overtime bills as well as additional administrative work, all of which “increases WAPA’s costs to create a fiscally downward spiral.” In the long term, the rece...