Recent water bills reflect a longer quarterly cycle

posted on 8/24/2021

The City of Dover recently sent water bills to customers for the last quarter, which for most customers reflect a billing cycle of about 120 days, about 28 days longer than a typical quarter. The lag in water bills is partly due to changes in billing software and the labor to read water meters that haven’t been switched out with new meters. Community Services Director John Storer plans to have every old water meter swapped out within 12 months.

Quarterly billing cycles have oscillated between 70 to 120 days. Once all the new meters are installed, the billing cycle will become more consistent. Because of the fluctuations in billing cycles, Storer encourages water customers to look at the gallons-per-day water usage rather than the total bill cost. For questions about water usage or if users feel there is an error in the bill, Storer encourages users to contact Community Services at 516-6450. For those with new meters, city staff can review usage and locate anomalies, such as a water leak, by comparing historical water use. Water leaks can waste hundreds to thousands of gallons of water. A simple drip every two seconds can lead to a waste of more than 1,500 gallons per year. See a water drip calculator here: https://drinktap.org/water-info/water-conservation/drip-calculator.

A portion of the bills also reflects the City Council-approved water rate increase that went into effect when the 2022 fiscal year began on July 1, 2021. The water rate increased from $5.54 per hundred cubic feet (HCF), or about $0.0074 per gallon of water, to $5.95 HCF, or $0.008 per gallon. A hundred cubic feet of water equals 748.052 gallons of water. An average shower uses about 17.8 gallons of water; with the rate increase, the cost of an average shower increased a penny from $0.132 to $0.142.

The City Council also approved a 17-cent sewer rate increase, which is now $9.64 HCF. The rate increases are used to reinvest in system infrastructure. On the water side, the City of Dover has been upgrading and renovating its drinking well sites. It is also replacing aging water mains, such as the current downtown project that replaced a 133-year old water main that runs along Washington Street and Main Street. On the sewer side, the city has upgraded the wastewater treatment plant to meet strict permit limits and investing in repairing and replacing aging sewer pipes throughout Dover.

For more information, contact Community Services at 516-6450.