FLINT, Mich. – Flint Mayor Karen Weaver has ordered the mailing of water bills be suspended in her city.
Weaver said in a news release Wednesday city employees are doing everything they can to get accounts in order so credits can be applied to water bills of Flint utility customers.
Complete Coverage: Flint Water Crisis
"While staff is working to make necessary adjustments, including obtaining the proper computer programs needed to calculate and apply adjustments and credits to the city’s more than 85,000 active and inactive utility accounts on record from April 2014 to present," the mayor's news release reads.
“The credits are coming," said Mayor Weaver. "Flint residents need and deserve this relief. I’ve said from day one, Flint residents should not have to pay for water they can not and are not using.”
Here's the statement from the mayor's office:
"Adjustments are needed to some accounts that were past due back in August of 2015. The fees were “set aside” after a judge issued a ruling on water rates in August 2015. This January, the same judge amended his August ruling, finding the water rates were set properly. So, the amount that was “set aside” on those past due accounts will now appear on the customers’ bill.
Another adjustment required on some utility accounts relates to balances from delinquent bills that were placed on property taxes. The water portion of the property tax bill has been returned to customer accounts to that the water credit can be calculated and applied.
By issuing a suspension on mailing out bills, the necessary adjustments can be made to Flint utility accounts to make the accounts whole. Instead of seeing their account balances get higher, due to the needed adjustments, the next bill most customers receive should include the credits from the state. The estimated average amount that will be applied to customer accounts is around $600. The bills are expected to be sent out in April."
Weaver plans to remove all lead service lines
A union-owned asset manager, Union Labor Life Insurance Co., has committed to bringing $25 million in low-cost loans to help remove lead pipes, Weaver announced Sunday.
The project, put together by the American Federation of Teachers and ULLICO, will help Weaver to move forward on her Fast Start initiative to remove all lead-tainted pipes from Flint homes.
“The people of Flint have been waiting for action to remove lead-tainted lines,” Weaver said. “On March 4, I was pleased that we pulled and replaced the first lead line. This investment from union pension funds means that we can move forward to remove more lead lines and renew Flint’s infrastructure. I am very grateful to ULLICO and AFT for putting this idea crafted at the Clinton Global Initiative into action in our community.”
Water problems in Flint began after the city switched its water supply from Detroit's system to the Flint River in 2014 to save money.