They’re late paying bills

By SHELLEY TERRY, MARK TODD and MARGIE PAGE - Staff Writers
Star Beacon

November 21, 2008 01:40 am

— ASHTABULA — Dom Iarocci hates to beg, but he’s doing it.
He implores city residents to pay their trash and sewer bills.
“(The city auditor) says our department is way in the hole, and he’s saying people aren’t paying their bills,” said Iarocci, the city’s superintendent of public services. “We have a cash-flow problem.”
The poor economy may be forcing people to pick and choose which bills to pay, and in too many cases, municipal fees go waiting, officials said. In Conneaut, customers of the city-operated water and sewer plants are finding it increasingly difficult to make their monthly payments, said Finance Director John Williams.
“We’ve seen a substantial increase in requests for payment plans, extensions and public assistance,” he said. “I can tell how bad the economy is by the increase in calls.”
Ashtabula’s sanitation department usually takes in $85,000 in November, City Auditor Michael Zullo said. So far this month, Zullo has collected $36,100, he said.
“I am not sure if it’s the economy or the (new) fuel surcharge,” Zullo said. “It’s a severe cash-flow problem.”
In addition, November is an exceptionally busy month for Iarocci’s crews. They are intermittently picking up bagged leaves and dealing with snow. Don’t mention road salt and early snowstorms, or Iarocci’s eyes will glaze over, he jokes.
Iarocci said some expenses beyond the city’s control hurt his department’s budget earlier this year. Leading the way were fuel costs, he said. In addition to fuel, the budget has been hit this fall by a huge jump in the cost of road salt, he said. High demand across the country has seen the salt price double, from $33 a ton to about $66, he said.
Last month, council added a fuel surcharge to residents’ garbage bills.
There is some good news: Zullo said residents who have not been late on a trash/ sewer bill before now, but have a $50 late fee pending, will be granted a one-time penalty waiver.
Conneaut doesn’t charge a late fee for delinquent bills but does require a $25 payment to reconnect a customer who has been shut off for nonpayment, Williams said. So far this year, the city has mailed 4,115 shut-off notices to customers in danger of losing water service, an increase compared to last year, he said.
Not every notice results in loss of service, Williams said. Conneaut does not offer city-provided sanitation service.
Delinquent bills could pay a small role in the Conneaut’s budget problems, Williams said. Collections are down 3 to 4 percent, he said.
“Revenues are down slightly,” Williams said. “(Collections) could be partly to blame.”
Geneva City Manager Jim Pearson said Geneva’s water and sewer collection is holding steady, with no higher rate of delinquencies.
“We do have delinquencies, but no more than usual,” he said.
Pearson said the city was helpless to collect money owed until it bought the water system from Aqua Ohio in 2003.
“We used to see $70,000 to $80,000 in unpaid bills because we couldn’t turn off water service for unpaid bills. That number has dropped to $30,000 since we have taken over the system,” Pearson said. “If you don’t pay the bill we turn off the spigot. If the bill still isn’t paid we access the property tax.”
Pearson said the high foreclosure rate is the water and sewer system’s biggest struggle right now.
“Empty houses use no sewer and no water,” he said. “We see that reduction in use on our revenue sheets.”