Thursday, December 12, 2013

To Templeton's Light and Water customers

To Templeton's Light and Water customers

To The Editor: 12/12/2013
John M. Driscoll
General Manager, TMLWP

To The Editor:

As the General Manager of the Templeton Municipal Light and Water Plant I feel as though I need to respond to some of the statements that have recently been made by some of Templeton’s town officials.

It has been stated that it was not “fair”  for the water customers in town to “take a huge hit like that”, referring to our recent 23% increase in the water rates that we charge our water customers.  A fair response to this statement may be that perhaps it was not fair to use water department funds for 20 years to lower property taxes rather than maintain the water distribution system.  The years of reduced property taxation in town came with a high price tag; a non-compliant, nearly inoperative water department. 


Approximately 43% of all water pumped out of the wells was unaccounted for at year’s end, approximately 50% of the revenue meters were either malfunctioning or non-existent, the main well site roof had leaked water into the electrical panel for a few years, the water department would bill once every 18 months while taking 6 weeks to read the water meters that did work, the bulk of the water vehicles were in desperate need of either maintenance or replacement and there were 10 Notices of Non-Compliance from the MA Department of Environmental protection left unattended to.  But taxes were low.

It has been stated that our water rates went up 23% in addition to the customer charge increasing to $49 per quarter.  In actuality, the combined water usage rate plus the quarterly customer charge is equivalent to a 23% increase in the total rate.  Templeton Water did not increase its water usage rates by 23% and then raise the customer charges as well; the overall 23% increase is comprised of both the usage rates and the customer charges.  Some town officials have questioned why the water department needs more money after 5 years without any water rate increases. 

These reasons include but are not limited to water debt we inherited, new water debt we had to take on, a 20-year water system maintenance catch-up schedule, increased operating costs and a severe shortage of water sales due to empty homes in town.  In the same 5-year period Templeton’s rate of taxation has increased from $9.20 to $14.12 per $1,000 evaluated, a 53%increase over the duration.  Residents are curious as to why this is so in the absence of any comprehensive study justifying it.

It has been stated that Templeton’s residential water rates are the highest in the state according to the latest 2012 Tighe & Bond Water Rate Survey, which is based on annual residential water usage of 90,000 gallons.  This would be true were it not for the other 19 communities in the state that have higher annual residential water rates than Templeton does according to the exact same survey.  One town official has stated that the average yearly water bill in Templeton is $800.  This is certainly news to the Water Commissioners and to the General Manager who regularly exchange information on quarterly water sales.  In September of 2013 the average quarterly residential water bill was $120.82, or $483.28 per year. 

This is a far cry from the $800 figure mentioned previously.  A quick calculation for December (incorporating the 23% water rate increase) would estimate that a $120.82 water bill would increase to $148.61, or $594.44 per year keeping gallons sold constant.  So, before the water rate increase we arrive at $483 per year and after we arrive at $594 per year (both figures are less than $800).

Regarding the supposed investigations ongoing about Templeton Light and Water by the MA Department of Revenue, the Attorney General’s Office and now the Inspector General’s Office, we have yet to receive a single e-mail or phone call from anyone at any of these state agencies regarding alleged improprieties about the Templeton Wind Turbine or the Massachusetts Water Works Association.  I can only respond to this by stating that both the Light and Water Departments are audited once a year, independently from the town’s fiscal audit, and every year these audited financial statements have been made available to the town for their annual report. 

Town officials have a (second) letter to the MA Department of Revenue to inquire as to whether or not Templeton Water is to be operated as an enterprise fund. This has never been ambiguous to the Water Commissioners or to me, so I am not sure why it is to them.  Chapter 93 of the Special Acts of 2000 clearly states that the water department is to be operated as an enterprise fund under the direction of the light department under Massachusetts General Law Chapter 164.  Some town officials are still certain that despite what the statute clearly states, Templeton Water is bound by Massachusetts General Law Chapter 44, which we are not.  A water department cannot simultaneously operate under two different chapters of the Massachusetts General Law.

Templeton Light does not assert that the Special Acts supersede state law, only town law.  This is precisely why town voters cannot gather at town meeting or at the ballot box to vote to break a state law.  Chapter 93 can only be undone the same way that it was put into effect; petition/signatures, MA House passage, MA Senate passage, Governor’s Office passage, then special town ballot passage.

There is to be a non-binding ballot vote coming up in January for Templeton; the voters will be asked if they would like to rescind Chapter 93 of the Special Acts of 2000.  Another way to ask this question is whether the voters would like Templeton Water run by Templeton Light or by Templeton Selectmen?

John M. Driscoll
General Manager, TMLWP

8 comments:

  1. The water Enterprise belongs with the Sewer Department like other city and towns have. Look how it's done by others and follow suite! To let the people who run the tabs up on us keep doing just that is our bad. Other towns control the departments just fine with Select boards and don't have the votes stacked to control it by the people who run it. Yes the board has used money from your light bills to take over the water dept,write the articles and lawyers to do it paid also with your light money!
    All done with a stacked vote in the high school town meeting. Fair? Did you get mislead? Did you even know how it would work out? Did they tell you how far in the hole they would put us? The only Yes would be to mislead!
    Funny he didn't mention the Open Meeting Law complaint,did he? Why not. Did they have a rate hearing,another no!
    The General manager got a big raise to take over the water back in 2001- now he has his hay bail flip you all off. check out the hay bail by the red barn and see with your own eyes. Check out the gloves.No mistake there,he sends their seasons greetings. With both gloves Templeton.They don't need the extra money they need a new manager to manage the departments correctly,efficiently.Show them what you want and vote to recind the chapter 93 acts of 2000. It's not what it was meant to be. Last year shows the lack of leadership and financial problems as they could not find money to pay the bills with. How much light dept. money goes to the water dept bills? The cost of the lawyers to tell them how to do the job is proof they could care less about your money or budgets. Their lawyer got a 75.00 per hour raise this year,he now charges you 375.00 per hour to have others do his work and talk about it. You didn't get a say on many things and they will continue to do what they want unless they are stopped now. After talking with those in charge prior to acts of 2000 we were not as bad off as they say we were. And we only had a crew needed to do the job not what they want to have now. Jobs provided and pay raises were the goals and they made it happen,with under 200 people to vote it in then.
    No paper ballot just a stacked high school meeting. Sounds radioactive to me.
    Fair warning JD , Ballots don't get pressure when the gloves are off.
    Shareholder

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  2. If my memory serves me correctly the idea to separate the water department from the Board of Selectmen came from the Sewer Commissioners prior to the Light Department jumping on the idea. The reason the Sewer Commissioners thought this was a good idea was that the water system needed more attention and water is an important commodity. It now appears the town has loss control of decisions involving its water. In my opinion Ch 93 Acts of 2000 was contrived to give out raises and favors. It is true that many improvements have been made by the new department set up with Ch 93 Acts of 2000 the problem comes with accountability and ownership of the new department. The Board of Selectmen and the Advisory Board are asking good fiscal questions in regards to the Enterprise Fund that accompanies the Water Department and are receiving resistance from the water department. It also seems that the water department is no longer an asset of the town and has become the ownership of the Light and Water Department. It would appear the town is giving up its freedom to oversee its water source for the security that the Light and Water department are offering. We may end up with neither the freedom to oversee our water or the security of the Light and Water if these assets are being used as collateral for MMWEC and future projects by that entity. The Board of Selectmen and Advisory Board are acting to protect the town and its citizen's by trying to get a grip on the legality of Ch 93 Acts of 2000 and its fiscal setup while running into hostilities from the Light and Water. I believe the non-binding question to end Ch93 Acts of 2000 will give more accountability to the citizen's of Templeton if voted in the affirmative if nothing else than to say to the Light and Water lets end the BS.

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  3. $120.82 Water Bill???? my daughter and her husband live alone, no gardens or pool ..no children and her water bill has never been as low as $120.82!! basically what you are saying Mr. Driscoll is the majority of the residents in Templeton are single and are a family of one??? because that is about the only residents that may see a water bill that low.. I can tell you that when I received my December bill it was a huge increase, not chump change... the bill I received this month for just general household use is comparable to what I'm used paying during peak water usage months when I am filling my pool and watering my gardens! So I cannot wait to see what my water bill looks like during the upcoming Spring and Summer months... You mention in your letter Mr. Driscoll that you have to increase the water rate rates to compensate for all the empty and foreclosed homes in Templeton... higher tax rates and utilities are just going to create more empty homes in Templeton as many more people will be moving on up and out because they can no longer afford to live in this town. I lived here all of my life and if I was on the outside of this town looking in... I can say honestly Templeton no longer has any appeal there is nothing that Templeton has to offer that would entice me to live here...

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  4. Mr. Driscoll may wish to check with the firm that did the water rate study, Tighe & Bond for they are the ones that have posted a Massachusetts water rate survey and they have Templeton listed as $801.00 under annual cost. If that is news to Mr. Driscoll and the light commissioners, then perhaps they should get out more. While it is important to note that everything on the net as well as in newspapers do not make it factual, it is a fact that that very information is on the net with the name Tighe&Bond attached to it so before Mr. Driscoll calls anyone a liar, please check the available information. MGL chapter 164 covers the manufacture and sale of gas and electricity and chapter 44, section 53 1/2 covers enterprise funds which both the acts of 2000 and the Templeton water rate study both say the water department is an enterprise fund.

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  5. within the recent water rate study, it has 3 scenarios of rate increases and quarterly service fee with estimates of capital reserve balances of $72,000.00 to a high of $110,000.00 by FY2018. Perhaps the water department could increase these figures if the Light department refunded the years of charging the water department rent up to 2010. The figure presented as rent is $34,965.00. My question is if water and light are one entity, why does water pay rent to light rather than having put this amount away for capital reserve fund? Why did it take until 2008 to remove water receipts from the towns books while light and water continue to use the fed tax ID number of the town of Templeton? Could Templeton light refinance all water debt under better interest rates and save even more as the school district did. The school district received reimbursement from MSBA which seems odd seeing how the town of Templeton took on this debt and should have received the payment from MSBA, but that is another matter for another day.

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  6. What if we fully funded the schools and made the Water Department make up their budget deficit with box tops and money from Target?

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    Replies
    1. Why doesn't Mr. Driscoll tell the people of Templeton how many people the Water Department is paying, even though the Department is "broke". I will publish these facts when my "tree duty" is done or we get snowed in for a day or two. What I have learned from attending these meetings is they watch out for #1 first, and that is not the town or the customer. They watch out for themselves, and will not give up anything they have no matter what. Most real companies care about their customers and work to keep them satisfied but you and I have no say about what goes on. The Light and Water Commissioners feel safe enough to do what they want to do, and we can not do a dam thing about it. Bev.

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    2. Bev, you are quite correct....there isn't anything that anyone can do as long as the current board is in place. They "could" be replaced one-by-one over their term period with people of a different mindset, but it doesn't appear that is what the voters want. Otherwise it would have happened by now. Don't you think? I do think that the "well is poisoned" and nothing that Mr. Driscoll can do now would satisfy anyone. He is a lame-duck and should be given his "walking papers" by the current commission if there is ever to be any forward progress in town.

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