| R 122 |
| 2021 -- S 0628 Enacted 03/16/2021 |
| S E N A T E R E S O L U T I O N |
| RESPECTFULLY REQUESTING THAT THE RHODE ISLAND AUDITOR GENERAL’S OFFICE CONDUCT A THOROUGH REVIEW OF THE KENT COUNTY WATER AUTHORITY (KCWA) |
Introduced By: Senators Raptakis, Gallo, Rogers, Burke, Valverde, Anderson, Morgan, Calkin, DiMario, and McCaffrey |
| Date Introduced: March 16, 2021 |
| WHEREAS, During the previous nine months, some customers of the Kent County |
| Water Authority (KCWA) have received troubling and abnormally high water bills compared to |
| prior billing quarters. Often the increases seem entirely unjustified based upon their usage history. |
| One customer’s bill increased from $194.60 to an astounding $1,054.35; and |
| WHEREAS, Several residents suffering from this predicament were encouraged by the |
| KCWA to change their water meters and several of the customers who installed new Neptune |
| brand T-10 water meters have been the recipients of these bill increases. The Neptune brand T-10 |
| water meter has been the source of similar complaints in other jurisdictions across the nation; and |
| WHEREAS, The Kent County Water Authority has been asked, in response to this crisis, |
| to enact measures to ensure fair and accurate meter readings such as providing independent, third |
| party testing of the water meters in dispute, prohibiting water shutoffs on accounts with disputed |
| bills, prohibiting any interest charges being assessed on any current or future bills in dispute, |
| regardless of final resolution, prohibiting the comingling of bills for old and new meters, |
| suspending any bill in dispute that is thirty percent or more than the same quarter in the previous |
| year, placing such bills in escrow until the issue has been resolved fairly, and providing on the |
| spot documentation of old meter readings to consumers when they are replaced, so the consumer |
| has a photograph, receipt and point of reference when receiving a new bill; and |
| WHEREAS, Thus far, the KCWA has not responded to these reasonable requests. At the |
| same time, KCWA customers are being placed under significant financial hardship during a |
| pandemic when they can least afford it; now, therefore be it |
| RESOLVED, That this Senate of the State of Rhode Island hereby respectfully requests |
| that the Rhode Island Auditor General’s Office conduct a thorough review of the Kent County |
| Water Authority; and be it further |
| RESOLVED, That the Secretary of State be and hereby is authorized and directed to |
| transmit a duly certified copy of this resolution to Mr. Dennis Hoyle, CPA, MBA, Rhode Island |
| Auditor General. |
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| LC002360 |
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