Spotsylvania utility rates may go up

Yes yes, I know that any kind of fees or rates going up in the back of the ol’ Republican anti-tax crusading mind smells like a tax hike. This however is not a matter of raising or lowering “fees”, but rather a situation where the taxpayers have been getting a break that must unfortunately end:

Supervisor Gary Jackson said the previous board wanted to balance the sharp rate hikes of the early ’90s.

“I think it was felt we could give the rate payers a break for a few years from these massive increases,” he said.

As a result, Spotsylvania’s average customer now enjoys lower bills than customers of Henrico, Prince William, Loudoun, Stafford and Hanover counties.

Nearly 1,300 new water and sewer connections annually for the last five years have helped subsidize those lower rates.

Rising utility bills can be a huge concern for people who struggle to make ends meet, but the important thing to remember is that, if you notice an increase in your energy bills, there are a number of options available to you. For example, using an energy provider comparison site can help you to discover Champion Energy reviews as well as feedback from real customers that can make your decision about whether to switch providers easier.

Now that Spotsylvania is holding growth to 2% a year, Spotsy taxpayers are going to have to start footing the bill.

Supervisor Chris Yakabouski agreed, saying the supervisors shouldn’t put off tough decisions.

“We need to get away from basing the utilities budget on connection fees,” he said. “Either we do it now by slowing growth and raising those rates, or we just keep building out and let future boards or generations deal with the problem. That’s not a responsible way of doing things.”

Good call. Unfortunate, but a good call. . . and given this BOS’s leadership and courage this budget cycle, a “user fee” increase we can forgive.