Youngsville residents are expressing concerns with a rate hike on their on water, sewage and garbage bills. That increase is between $20 and $30.
Youngsville mayor, Ken Ritter, explains they’ve been putting off the increase for a while but it finally got to the point where they had to increase the price to make up for the increased cost of water and garbage services.
“Every little bit counts, I know it’s just $20 but in the grand scheme of things…,” said Noel Bourgeois, who lives in Youngsville.
Bourgeois said she was shocked when she opened her bill and saw the price for her utilities. The new rates went into effect on April 1st. Most residents had to pay nearly double sewage rates. Bourgeois said she typically pays about $60 to $70 each month, but this month will pay nearly $90.
“You know, now we’re just trying to figure out, with a newborn, ways to not have a $90 bill,” she said, explaining her family will have to cut back moving forward.
The water base rate went from $10.50 to $15, the price per thousand gallons remained at $3.67. The sewer base rate stayed at $9 while the rate per thousand gallons went from $1.70 to $4.
Garbage & recycling went from $18 to $20.
Mayor Ken Ritter said the ordinance was approved last month to keep the city in compliance.
“We’ve reached a point where it was difficult to not pass on some of these increases to our residents,” he explained. “Wholesale water that we purchase from LUS to supply our customers has gone up. In addition to the trash and vendor expense increasing, we also had some increased maintenance and repairs to maintain our sewer infrastructure. Some of our sewer lift stations are aging and some had pumps that needed to be replaced.”
But many residents feel they weren’t given much of an explanation before the new rates went into effect.
“If we could’ve gotten a little notice because all [the bill] says is in order to get in line with DHH. Where were we so out of line? You know a little explanation would’ve been nice, not just surprise,” Bourgeois said.
Ritter recommends one way to manage your bill is getting a second water meter if you have a sprinkler system for your lawn or a pool so the water usage is not also reflected in your sewage bill.
