Prince William water rate snafu heads to SCC hearing

Virginia American Water didn’t dot all the ‘i’s’ with rate increase.

No, you’re not crazy. Your water bill may have in fact been on the rise over the past few months. But whether it will stay that rate – or a refund is on the way – depends on the outcome of a State Corporation Commission hearing on the failure of Virginia American Water to follow proper notification procedure for a requested rate increase.

“They didn’t provide all the notification they were supposed to provide,” said Prince William assistant county attorney Kevin Black.

The issue began in March 2010, when Virginia American Water requested a $6.879 million rate increase in Alexandria, Hopewell and Prince William. The reason?

“The proposed application reflects the increasing costs of providing quality water service to customers, [and] including the cost necessary to support” several planned capital improvements, Virginia American Water reported, on its website.

The Prince William portion of the increase – and American Water only serves Coles and Neabsco magisterial districts in the county -- would total $1.811 million.

The county Board of Supervisors opposed the increase when it was first proposed, but by law – and with SCC approval -- Virginia American Water could go forth with interim rate increases at the same time its application was being processed.

“They are supposed to send customers notification of that interim rate, though. Thirty days before the [interim] rates take effect, customers have to be notified. But they weren’t,” Black said. So some customers may have seen rates on the rise since August 2010, without knowing why – or perhaps, without even noticing, Black added.

“They were allowed to start the interim rates as of August 2010 but they did it on a staggered basis, and on top of that, they bill quarterly. So not all the customers may have noticed,” he said.

So what’s happened now is that the SCC – which recognizes the company’s failure to properly notify -- is giving the public a “second crack at commenting,” Black said, and has scheduled a hearing on the proposed rate increases for Feb. 24 at 10 a.m. in the SCC’s courtroom in the Tyler Building on 1300 East Main Street, Richmond. The hearing is open to the public; anyone may speak, according to a press release from Jason Grant, communications director for Prince William County.

Additionally, members of the public may express opinion about the proposed rate increase by mail by March 10. To do so, write Joel Peck, clerk, SCC, c/o Document Control Center, P.O. Box 2118, Richmond, Va., 23218, and reference the case number, PUE-2010-0001.

According to Virginia American Water information posted on its website, the $1.811 million increase to Prince William residents would lead to an average $5.10 monthly bill increase. Should the SCC deny the rate increase application, some residents may be due a refund for interim rate hikes paid since August 2010.

Staff writer Cheryl Chumley can be reached at 703-530-3903.