JAY — Under a new sewer rate formula adopted by selectmen Monday, customers who use a lot of water will pay more than customers who conserve.

Using the 2009 water readings and new rate formula, 38 sewer customers will pay about the same, 333 will pay less, and 453 will pay more. There will be 234 customers who will pay the minimum fee of $250, Sewer Department Superintendent Mark Holt said.

Revenue lost by customers paying a lower fee is estimated at $62,000 and revenue gained by customers paying a higher fee would be $72,000, he said.

About 492 of the customers will pay up to $45 more than what they currently pay and 47 customers will pay double what they pay now, Holt said.

The new billing method using water consumption to calculate sewer-user fees will take effect July 1. Selectmen set the minimum base rate at $250 for 3,200 cubic feet of water used per year. Any amount used above that would be charged an additional 5.58 cents per cubic foot.

The new formula will charge a customer $495 for 7,600 cubic feet of water per year. That would be $180.52 more than the current rate.

A person using 18,400 cubic feet of water will pay $1,098.16 compared to the current $630. It is an increase of $468.16.

On the other hand, someone using 2,800 cubic feet of water a year would see their bill drop to $250, the minimum base rate set, which is $65 less than the current fee.

Selectmen agreed to place a first-year cap on bills so no one would pay more than double what they pay this year to help people adjust to the new formula, Holt said.

The rest of the sewer budget is paid through townwide taxation. Schools and town buildings would also be assessed sewer fees, which would bring in about $9,500.

The average Jay household using 5,200 cubic feet of water a year will pay $360, which is $40 less than the statewide average, Holt said.

Resident Harvey Calden said according to the calculations he initially looked at, which turned out to be incorrect, his sewer bill is going to be four times more than what he pays now.

He has only one bathroom at his auto repair shop but they wash vehicles 365 days a year.

Because the water goes into the sewer system, it has to be treated, Holt said.

Calden said it would be cheaper for him to drill a well and put in a septic system.

Holt said he wouldn’t be able to set up his own system because he would be in violation of the town’s sewer ordinance. If a structure is within 350 feet of the waste-water system, it has to be hooked up to the town’s sewer system.

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