Township board approves mandated sewer rate hike

By RICHARD JENKINS

[email protected]

Ironwood Township — Sewer rates in Ironwood Township are increasing at the end of May, after the Ironwood Township Board of Trustees approved a mandated rate increase Monday as part of the completion of the township’s Stormwater, Asset Management and Wastewater grant.

“Tonight marks the end of the SAW grant project,” Randy Scott, with the engineering firm C2AE, said Monday.

Scott explained the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality, which oversees the SAW program, has several requirements for municipalities after they complete the program to avoid being forced to begin repayment immediately.

“According to state rules; not getting the documents in by the three-year anniversary of the grant contract triggers the repayment clause. Not implementing rate increases to close the gap, which we identified last fall … triggers the repayment clause,” Scott said.

The township has five years to set funds aside to close the $24,888 gap he referenced, Scott said, but 10 percent must be done in the first year.

According to the information presented at the meeting, the initial increase — which is only being done on sewer rates — will raise the flat rate from $21.85 to $22.15, and the commodity rate determined by actual usage will increase 10 cents from $7.20 to $7.30 per 1,000 gallons used.

This translates to an increase of roughly 50 to 60 cents per user each month, according to information presented at the meeting, with the actual rates varied depending on usage.

The township had until early to mid-May to approve these increases, Scott said, to avoid triggering the repayment clause. The increases take effect May 31, according to the board’s motion.

Ultimately; the township’s five-year target rates are $24.40 as a base rate, and $8 per 1,000 gallons used.

The state requires money be set aside, Scott said, to ensure there is money there for future repairs and upgrades to the system as it ages.

“The SAW program was set up to do one major thing, to make sure the communities were putting aside enough money to keep their systems going and improve them over time,” he said.

The township, which is just one of several local municipalities participating in the program, has received $279,950 through the SAW grant program since it was awarded in May 2014.

Township Supervisor Steve Boyd told the Daily Globe Tuesday the deficit that required the increases wasn’t the result of previous failures to put money away, but rather was simply because the previous rates weren’t as high as the state required.

The board also authorized Boyd to sign the final paperwork, including a final disbursement request, Monday.