MASON CITY – According to documents from City Hall, Mason City water and sanitation customers could face large rate increases for both services.
According to a projected budget directly from City Hall, water rates would escalate $1.62 each month and sanitation rates would escalate 45 cents each month, for a yearly increase of $24.84.
Current average water bill in Mason City is $24.25; the “necessary rate adjustment” would take the total to $25.87, or a 6.69% increase.
Current average sanitation bill is $9.60 per month. The new rate, if approved by the city council, would be $10.05, for a a 4.69% increase.
In anticipation of the coming election last year, the council held the overall tax levy flat, keeping the water rate increase at zero while raising the sanitation rate only 10 cents.
The projected state rollback tax looks to be estimated at $2.20 per year on a $100,000 home. That would bring the total projected tax hike to $27.04 per year for homeowners with a $100,000 home.
The council will continue to discuss the 2014-2015 budget at a work session this Thursday evening. The hearing is open to the public and will be held at 6:00 PM in the second floor conference room at City Hall.
City council member Alex Kuhn said Monday that the budget will be “tight” this year “for a number of reasons” and he hopes the proposed increases can be reduced before the budget is certified in March.
The town is shrinking but spending keeps increasing. Why does it cost more, even adjusted for inflation, to educate graduating classes of 300 then it did to educate classes of 500?
And that used to include drivers ed and no required sports fees.
We should be spending 40% less, not 200% more!
Government is always hungry, always greedy for more tax money and more growth.
This is outrageous!!! This will make our water bill more than our car payment!!!
The bill in my town is combined for water/sewer and garbage/landfill charges. My average water bill during the winter is about $50 each month. More in the summer. and the garbage is about $20 each month. Plus a special assessment of about $20 every six months. Common sense would be to simply buy a tag for each bag a family puts out. If you recycle or dont create garbage you dont pay anything. the problem as I understand is that the landfill charges each town a certain dollar amount for each dwelling in that town. and the city needs to recover that money. Again common sense would be that the landfill charge a flat ton rate for garbage haulers. And the price per tag be charged accordingly. But then common sense doesn’t always apply.
$24.25 is the average? I find that really hard to believe, last month my water and garbage bill was 99.87? i never used more water than normal. i remember not that long ago I could put a $20 bill in the envelop and still have some a credit towards next months bill.
Welcome to Bookmeyersville, USA, neighbor. Eric’s wife pays the bills at his house, so he’s got no care if the rest of us are broke.
Meanwhile the mayor and those asshats on the city council are giving away taxpayer money to the biggest Auto Monopoly intown. Hey what about all of the other business that went to the bank and got a loan and paid it back. They did not get welfare from the city to open a business. IF the bank will not lend them money then they don’t have a viable business plan Eric. That is common sense the bank knows all of their lenders problems and if they say no to a loan that means that there is no money to be made there. I would like to know why is Mason city in the banking business Mr Mayor?
This should surprise no one. It was a given that after giving away so much of our money last year to their buddy’s they would have to get more somewhere. You people voted for these clowns, now you can live with it.
Money has been tight for the last 40 years but they always find money for their projects