Mt. Union residents are fed up with sewer rates

BY KARYN SPORY

Mt. Pleasant News

MT. UNION ? Twenty-two names adorn a petition urging city representatives to pay the Regional Utility Sewer System (RUSS) from money already collected.

The petition was presented to Mt. Union Mayor John Marek during the city council meeting Tuesday night.

?We would like for the city council to pay what money has been collected from taxes (to RUSS) and assess the people and put liens on the people?s property for what they owe on sewer payments,? said Mt. Union citizen Randy Wilkerson.

As the mayor was set to adjourn the ten-minute meeting Tuesday, Wilkerson stood up and asked if he could present the mayor with the petition. He did, handing the document to the mayor, which was quickly flipped over before calling for a motion to adjourn.

?We?re not even going to talk about it,? Wilkerson questioned.

?I haven?t read the petition, I?m sure the petition states it wants me to make everyone pay, and I can?t make them pay. I can?t make them pay their electric bill; in fact, it is unconstitutional for the City of Mt. Union to be responsible for individual payments,? Marek said following the brief meeting.

Wilkerson said he and his wife, Lelia, received a notice in the mail Tuesday afternoon advising them their sewer rates would be doubling. Wilkerson said he set out immediately to talk with neighbors and start circulating a petition. In just a few hours, nearly a third of RUSS users had signed the petition.

Of the 62 homes in Mt. Union, habitually, there have been 15 to 20 individuals who have not paid their monthly bills since the system went online in 2010, RUSS executive director Bruce Hudson stated during the organization?s December monthly meeting. It was during that meeting the RUSS executive board approved charging Mt. Union consumers $150, instead of $75.85.

Hudson stated during the December meeting that RUSS is the bondholder on the system, and according to the United States Department of Agriculture?s (USDA) provisions and requirements, they have the ability to raise rates.

The new rates will be affective for the January billing cycle, which is due Jan. 15.

?It?s a shock to have to pay that kind of money,? said Wilkerson.

Lelia said she thought the originally agreed upon amount of $45 was plenty to pay and was astounded when the rates were raised to $75. ?It?s too much,? she said. ?The people that weren?t paying to begin with certainly aren?t going to be paying now.?

?And those who were may not be able to now,? added her husband.

The couple said they were frustrated with administration in Mt. Union, the mayor and city council members specifically, because ?they will not do what they were elected to do.?

?We want them (the city) to pay what is owed,? said Lelia, who noted that instead of paying legal fees for the various court battles the city has been in with RUSS, the fees could have already been paid.

Dan Johnson agreed with his neighbor and said he was concerned for the residents of Mt. Union, especially those living on a fixed income. Dan?s wife, Linda, said she has already spoken with neighbors who have contacted RUSS to set up a payment program, as they cannot pay the full $150 monthly bill at one time.

Although the petition was presented during Tuesday?s meeting, it was not discussed, as it was not on the agenda. Marek said the item would be on January?s agenda.

?It?s just frustrating we can?t talk about it,? admitted Wilkerson. ?I thought if I mentioned (the rates doubling) we might talk about what we will try to do.?

He added he hopes the city broaches the subject before he and his wife can?t afford to live in their house anymore.