Rising water bills and the $11 million KCFD overtime budget were both on the agenda for Wednesday's Finance and Governance Committee meeting at City Hall.
The committee looked at options on the heels of a decade of water cost increase, punctuated in 2016. For some, water bills have risen $20 or $30 every month in recent years. Stormwater cost has also increased over the past decade.
The issue led Mayor Sly James to create a task force to lower costs and fund $5 billion in improvements by 2035.
The task force has multiple recommendations for the water department:
Rate structure & charges
- Maintain the existing declining block rate structure with a lifeline rate. Roughly 75 percent of customers pay only the first block (lifeline) rate – making the current type of structure the more affordable option for the majority of customers.
- Growth should pay for growth -- Enact System Development Charges should be used to increase the capacity of the utilities to support growth while not discouraging redevelopment and keeping KCMO competitive with surrounding communities.
Customer assistance/billing
- Develop an Advance Payment policy for new customers to build greater financial stability.
- Use non-rate revenue for low-income customer assistance, community gardens, and water efficiency programs. Non-rate revenue not spent on these programs annually can be used for rate relief for all ratepayers.
- Lower the maximum amount distributed ($500) to an individual customer in order to help more customers.
- Develop a program to assist low-income customers with targeting leak detection and water efficiency efforts.
- Continue to provide education and outreach on programs, rates, the Overflow Control Program’s impacts on rates, affordability, customer assistance, and how to read the bill.
Stormwater
- Be efficient with stormwater operating expenses while continuing to meet all state/federal regulations.
- Explore ways to address the operating deficit and fund some flood reduction projects while considering the overall impact on customers’ bills. Revenue from stormwater fees is the preferred option, rather than property or sales taxes.
- Explore increasing block rate structure for stormwater combined with an incentive program.
- Review options for adopting city ordinances that require developers to integrate stormwater best management practices when development or redevelopment occurs.
- Explore the use of Levee Districts to pay for ongoing levee maintenance. Should property owners desire increased flood protection, they could also vote to assess themselves & use funds for capital projects.
See the full presentation below.
The fire department also presented how it’s used $11 million to pay for overtime costs in this budget. An outside accounting firm found that of top overtime earners, eight out of ten of them were EMTs or paramedics.
Fire Chief Paul Berardi attributes the budget decisions to a shortage of medical workers.
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Data showed a few of the following trends:
- Vacation and sick leave spike at the same times: June & July; Friday through Sunday
- Fewer leave hours were taken in 2016 than any year since 2012.
- Injury leave and modified duty hours have increased significantly after a fire in October 2015 that killed two firefighters and injured at least four others. Numbers could show that's stabilized in recent months.
Berardi said before anyone jumps to conclusions the data needs to be analyzed.
"There are different conditions out there, and those folks on the ambulances and on the engine companies and pumper companies are out there in 90-100-degree weather working. They are working. It's very difficult, and it's a very difficult job," said Berardi.
The accounting firm suggested things like trading out crews and making firefighters sign for overtime hours. The firm also recommended hiring civilians for some of the department's administrative jobs.
The next steps released Wednesday include the following:
- Compare structural vacancies and overtime costs in previous years.
- Analyze how structural vacancies have impacted KCFD's current relief factor and ideal efficient relief factor.
- Identify policies or incentives that can reduce overtime.
- Continue to track trends and staffing levels.
