Council Splits on Sewer Rate Increase and Admin Thumbs Nose at Voters

Monday night (Mar 26) Council approved 3 separate increases to the sewer rates. The vote was close – 5 FOR the increases (Lynch-4, M cLaughlin-5, OHare-6, VanHo-8, Holzheimer-Gail-P) and 4 AGAINST the increases (Gilliham-1, Scarniench-2, Jones-3, Langman-7). Total increase will be $12/mcf (approx. 7,500 gallons).

There is no question OM&R rates had to go up. The Waste Water Treatment Plant is broke. It cannot fund operations, maintenance and repairs. It for sure can’t fund the 60 day Reserves requirement. Rates will increase $5/mcf (from $19.60 to $24.60/mcf).

Capital funds are used to finance debt and fund improvements. That rate will go up $4/mcf (from $4.08 to $8.08/mcf). An additional increase of .50 will occur in 2014, ‘16, ‘18 and ’19. $2 of the increase is to fund a new membrane technology system for WWTP. Sometime down the road, the EPA will approve a plan to bring Euclid into compliance with the Clean Water Act. The City is counting on membrane tech approval, but that hasn’t happened yet.

Peterson funds finance sewer line repairs. That rate will increase $2/mcf (from $11.88 to $13.88/mcf). An additional increase of $2 will occur in 2013. In 2008, Council approved $2/mcf/year for 5 years increases to replace CSOs (Combined Sewer Overflows). The CSO improvements were never EPA authorized, so the Administration diverted those funds to sewer maintenance.

Waterline funds are used to re-pave the half street left behind when Cleveland Water replaces a waterline and paves the half side affected. That fund is going up $1/mcf (from $9 to $10/mcf).

It all looks reasonable. The City must come into compliance with the EPA. It will cost millions to implement. So why did 4 council members vote NO? The four dissenting Council members were not comfortable with the increases because the EPA has not signed off on any proposals put forward by the City. They wanted to increase rates for the immediate needs of the City – Operations, Debt Service, Cash Reserves and Sewer Line repair/replacement. But without a written okay from the EPA, they wanted to wait on funding a plan that might not be approved. You can link to Ward 7 Councilman Langman’s blog on this page for his take. Additionally, Ward 2 Councilwoman Scarniench offered an amendment lowering Capital charges by $2/mcf. It was defeated 5-4.

For my part, I would like to have seen Council go even further by eliminating the $2-$3/mcf increase that covers the cost of the 2 mill levy that Euclid voted down in 2010. When I asked Law Director Frey for the rationale in slipping it in to OM&R and Peterson, he responded, “Yes, the Two Mil Sewer Levy was defeated at the ballot. We nonetheless have the requirement that we maintain our sewer lines, our storm and our sanitary sewer lines. We’ve built into this rate the cost of maintaining those storm and sanitary sewer lines. That’s what the MOM [Maintenance, Operation, Management] program is. It requires us to maintain the local collection system, that’s being charged to Peterson. It requires us to maintain the trunk system and that’s being charged to the overall plant system so the outside communities pay their portion. That is a requirement of the Consent Decree, the MOM program is a requirement of the Consent Decree and we have to fund it. It is part of the overall rate structure.”

This kind of logic pains me. The premise for the Law Director’s logic is that the government entity takes precedence over the individual. Using that logic, the government has the right to use whatever means necessary to do whatever it wants any time it wants.  

But that premise is false. In America, the individual takes precedence over the government entity. The government is there to protect the individual. When the people vote, government must honor that vote. The City Administration with Council approval did not do that. Instead, in direct opposition to the will of the people, it will collect the lost funds and maybe more by burrying the funding in the OM&R and Peterson rate increases. This is the second time since 2003, a vote of the people was thrown out. The first instance was around 2005. The people of Euclid rejected a Council re-zoning of Hillandale for residential and church use. Their vote was thrown out and the land was re-zoned anyway.

It’s bad enough the City mandated and is still collecting Garbage & Lighting fees that were supposed to be temporary. Ignoring a vote though, is worse. It is in my mind anyway.