JAY – North Jay water customers have a chance Tuesday to discuss proposed Water District rate hikes. The proposed increase is more than 33 percent.

A hearing is scheduled for 7 p.m. at the North Jay Water District’s Office at 15 Mount View, which is off Old Jay Road.

The district hasn’t had a rate increase since 1995, Superintendent Richard Jackson said last month. It is needed to cover rising operating costs, labor costs, procedural changes in mandated water testing and continued upgrading of the system, he said.

Additionally, depreciation charges on replacement mains, a building addition, as well as debt incurred to complete the needed system upgrades, and to replace a vehicle, have substantially affected the district’s operating costs, according to a hearing advertisement.

Among the proposed increases are the base water rate for the first 1,000 cubic feet of water or about 750 gallons to increase to $60 from the existing $46 – a 33.4 percent increase.

The district is also proposing a rate hike on fire protection services the town pays for 46 public fire hydrants owned and operated by the district. The rental fee is scheduled to be $12,772 each quarter or $51,088 a year.

Those figures reflect 36.9 percent increase for a projected $13,769 in additional revenue for a year.

The new water rates, if approved, would begin Jan. 1, 2004.

dperry@sunjournal.com

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