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ECUA Approves Garbage, Water, Sewer Rate Hikes
September 16, 2011
ECUA customers will see an increase in their monthly bill, and ECUA employees will see a pay increase following actions taken Thursday.
By a 3-2 margin, the Emerald Coast Utility Authority board approved a 7 percent increase in water and sewer rates, just below the 8 percent rate previously set by the board as part of a three year rate increase schedule.
“We considered the hardship this might cause with the current state of economy,” Nathalie Bowers, ECUA spokesperson, said. “But it was necessary with the need for capital improvements and infrastructure maintenance.”
Sanitation rates will increase by 1.7 percent. A residential sanitation customers will see their bill go from $18.35 to 18.66 per month. Service for senior citizens will increase from $15.38 to $15.64, and the “Lifeline” rate will increase from $8.74 to $8.89 per month.
“Tipping fees at the landfill are directly responsible for the need to increase sanitation service rates,” Bowers said.
Over 500 ECUA employees also received a 3.5 percent pay raise at Thursday’s board meeting. The raise is intended to offset the 3p percent their salaries that they are now required to contribute to their state pension retirement under recently enacted state legislation. The additional half percent is to cover additional payroll costs on the pension contribution.
The pay raise, Bowers said, will be covered by funds returned by the state because of retirement program savings.
Board members Larry Walker, Elizabeth Campbell and Elvin McCorvey voted for increases as part of the fiscal year 2012 budget, while Dale Perkins and Lois Benson voted against.
Comments
21 Responses to “ECUA Approves Garbage, Water, Sewer Rate Hikes”
Too bad that Seniors and those on fixed incomes don’t get a raise too. All these little increases are a big burden to people who have to cut back on food or medication to make up the difference.
Well i must say employees love to come to your house at all times of night because your pipes broke…. Or there is a choke in your sewer line and you cap is flowing into your tub…… Ecua employees do more for you than you think… Firefighters couldn’t put you house out if not for hard working me or women that keep the water system up to par….
They figured out how to get a few more bucks from everybody.
Maybe now they can figure out how to keep the poop in the pipes.
I know pretty unlikely but we can only hope.
Please check your facts before making remarks. Most don’t realize the whole story. There is much more to the story than what is in the articles that you read. Just because someone is a recipient of paid retirement, doesn’t mean they are getting rich by any stretch of the imagination. Almost 30 years ago, my spouse went to work for ECUA. The pay was low, but the benefits were good, paid retirement being part of that; an offset for the lower than average wages. Now, almost 30 years later, the pay is still lower than average for a near 30 year employee. The benefits aren’t as good as they once were, and the retirement benefits have been cut drastically. Until now, my spouse had not received any sort of pay increase in 5 years. Evaluations were above average, but no raises were being given. Prior to that, the only raises received were cost of living increases averaging $.35 per hour, which equates to $14.00 per week. Something is better than nothing, but, an additional $14.00 a week doesn’t go very far this day and time. Bottom line is, unless you work for ECUA, you have no idea how much or how little these employees are making or how much or how little their retirement is. Take a look at their job postings sometime and see what kind of wages their hourly emplyees are making. If you think that ECUA employees are going to be on easy street once they retire, you are sadly mistaken.
Yes I’d pay extra for the firemen and police, because they need good working equipment TOO SAVE LIVES!!! Plus the fact the the firemen are volunteers and DO NOT get payed !!
Of course they are going to approve a raise hike. Who turns down more money. But I can’t see customers getting a better service or deal for the extra money.
Come on people
We have no problem with a higher fire tax to support shiny new fire trucks.
Gulf power has constat increases, their not GOVERMENT?
@ psu1earl:
.05 X 365 = $18.25
Your retirement will consist of a few cheeseburgers at Whataburger.
Remember that purdy new truck they get to drive every time you write your
check folks, Just another case where the government will always get theirs
and that goes for the people who work for them.
I did not know that “capital improvements and infrastructure maintenance.”
Included such things as the bells and whistles, shiney and pretty options for the garbage trucks.
Great way to show your customer finacial responsibility with optional aluminum wheels, optional aluminum fuel tanks, chrome grill, chrome bumper, chrome tool boxes, chromed air tanks, etc. etc.
To all those who think it’s just a few pennies… please would you just give me a nickle a day for a year… after all it’s just a nickle… lol… you figure out how much I will get after a year from the likes of student and Cheryl… It may even pay for my retirement after a few years!
not sure where Cheryl lives, but they seem to miss our street for recycling pickup about every other week. Maybe their pay increase will help to jog their memories and they will actually come do the job we are paying them to do! and just MAYBE, they will let us pay our bill online with out charging a ridiculous fee which makes me go back to a check and a stamp
No one is helping me pay for my retirement!! Just glad I can help others accomplish their retirement. When you retired guys are enjoying the good life, I’ll still be working, because I shared my wealth.
When you’re on a fixed income it’s easy to notice that everyone gets a raise to cover the increased cost of living but those on fixed incomes. No one connected to the government has to pay for their contributions to the pension plan, they just raise the fees and stick us with the pay increase to cover it. Gee, I wonder why the news broke yesterday about more Americans being currently below the poverty level than ever before? It’s not too hard to figure out why!
I would rather pay a few cents extra than drop garbage pickup and be up to my eyeballs in trash….think how SMELLY that would be
By the way, I meant ECUA’s expensive new truck!!
I used to wonder why some people didn’t have garbage pickup. Now I know. They have to pay for their expensive new truck!!
We enjoy excellent service from ECUA and are very grateful to have a recycling can that we just roll to the street. Not every community has that opportunity. I am not about to complain over a 31 cent per month increase especially when the service is so dependable.
You said it Capt..We need to draw up a document like the Magna Carta, and take it to these Board Members and Commissioners. These rate increases are comming left and right.
It’s great to be financing more raw sewage spills from the “new and improved” sewage treatment plant.
Wow they cut the pick up days to one day and get a pay increase…I wonder if my boss would let me work four days and get payed for five…Wow
Sign of the times we live in