Water Bill Increase Coming For Chatham Borough Residents

CHATHAM, NJ — To help combat the constraints imposed by inflation on the borough, the committee recently introduced a resolution outlining the price increases for both water and sewer fees.

Carolyn Dempsey, a Chatham Borough Committee member, recently presented the recently passed resolution at the December meeting, as well as an explanation for why the rates were changing.

In the new year, the water rate will be increasing from $5.15 per every 100 cubic feet to $5.46 per every 100 cubic feet. The sewer rate will also change, rising from $4.54 per 100 cubic feet to $4.90 per 100 cubic feet as a result of the change.

According to Dempsey, the impact of inflation on the borough, a recent overhaul of the waste treatment plant, along with the recent spike in healthcare costs have played a role in the rate increase.

"There is a requirement that our water utility be self-sustaining, meaning that it's able to run on the revenues that it receives and any shortfall needs to be made up for in our budget. The fees that we receive from our water utility cover the health benefits for the employees who primarily work with the water utility," Dempsey said.

Earlier this year, the state surprised all New Jersey municipalities, including the Chathams, with a 20 percent increase in healthcare insurance rates, which must be covered by the municipalities.

Mayor Thad Kobylarz previously stated in a press conference that the taxpayers in each municipality will bear the brunt of the premium hike, stating that "the money has to come from somewhere."

"Due to all these different elements, we're forced to increase those fees and that is what this resolution is about," Dempsey said.

The increase in water fees is only a small part of that; an increase in property taxes is also potentially expected in the near future.

"We run a really tight ship in the water utility, but we can't continue to erode our fund balance as some of these expenses, fuel, healthcare, etc. are running out of control. When we talked to our CFO about this on Friday, she did indicate that they are hoping that these will level off after this year. The state promises that the healthcare increases will level off as well, so fingers crossed," Council Member Jocelyn Mathiasen said.