Billing Information


Billing and Rate Information

 

The Big Flats Water Department bills accounts every month.  Some of our accounts are billed monthly, others quarterly. All residential accounts are billed quarterly. Commercial accounts are a mix of both monthly and quarterly accounts.  If you are not billed monthly, you can tell what your billing cycle is by the first digit of your account number.

               1xxxx-xx or 4xxxx-xx       Billed in January, April, July, and October

               2xxxx-xx                                   Billed in February, May, August, and November

               3xxxx-xx                                   Billed in March, June, September, and December

 

We bill by the number of thousands of gallons metered.  See below for examples.

In this example the account is billed quarterly. As you can see, we use just the 1,000’s in our calculations.  Once we get the # of thousands then the bill is calculated using the appropriate rates and minimums. The August bill is for 8,000 gallons, that incurs a minimum charge for most residential accounts. The November bill is for 14,000 gallons so the account incurs the minimum charge plus a charge per thousand over the minimum gallons included. For accounts starting with 1, 2, or 3 that minimum is 10,000 gallons therefore they would be charged for the 4,000 over.

May Meter Read

Aug Meter Read

Aug Billed Amt

Nov Meter Read

Nov Billed Amt

9,500

17,275

8,000

31,999

14,000

(17 9 = 8)

(31 17 = 14)


Current Water Rates 

Full Schedule of Rates and Fees

Residential Rate Comparison Chart 

Questions on Your Bill?

We read meters electronically.  There is a receiver on your meter and we can pick up the readings by just driving by with the laptop in the vehicle. Our water meters have no moving parts so there is nothing to impede the flow or metering. And, in a case where the flow is obstructed the meter read would be lower than it should be because of the obstruction.     If you think your usage is high take a moment to consider the season and the time period the bill covers. Summer bills are usually higher because you use more water., i.e. pools, gardens, washing cars, showers etc. 

Most often the cause of higher than expected water bills are : running toilets, leaking faucets or malfunctioning water softeners. We have also seen cases of furnace humidifiers being installed incorrectly and water is just passing through them constantly, unnoticed, until the bill arrives.  Of course broken pipes are noticed right away and repaired but be aware that the water is metered.  If you have concerns about your usage please check the obvious places first. And check your meter when you know you are not using any water (no laundry, dishwasher, etc), if it is registering water usage, the water is  going somewhere.