08/28/2026
We hear you, and we understand your concerns about water and sewerage rates. Much of yesterday’s Council meeting was about water, because we felt it was important for citizens to be able to voice their concerns and hear from the water department and administration directly.
In the meeting, and in meetings behind the scenes over the past few months, we identified and addressed the central issues and common themes we’ve heard and seen from countless citizens. We presented solutions, pressed for better communication and transparency, and made progress on a few action items.
This NOLA.com article below provides a good summary of the meeting. But in case you can’t access it, here is an overview and topline points.
There were main 3 action items I recommended:
1. Independent rate study
2. Appeals process
3. Expanded in-person meetings
>> Independent rate study: The council unanimously passed a resolution introduced by Councilmember Tim Kerner Jr. to hire a third-party firm to conduct a rate study. This should be done every 10 or so years in a parish like ours, but hasn’t been done in 20 years. Through this independent rate study, an outside firm can analyze water and sewer rates relative to infrastructure revenue.
>> Appeals Process: Right now, there’s no formal appeals process. There are situations that deserve another review, such as significant bill spikes without explanation… or if the water department says you have a leak, plumbers say you don’t, and you’re stuck in some cases with a $650 or $2500 water bill that you’re forced to pay. That is devastating many people right now, especially those on fixed incomes and those just trying to get by. Despite what we’ve been told, not everybody has a leak. A third party appeals process is common sense.
>> Expanded in-person water department customer service: I requested that the water department offer expanded in-person appointments, including walk-in services, in an actual office so citizens can go through their billing concerns. The water department is building out space for the office, per our request. But they said walk-in services would not be feasible because previous attempts resulted in lines stretching out of the building. As we noted, most days there are 10-20 people coming to the government building looking for the water office. They deserve to be able to speak with a human about their bill, and not be shown the door and given a number to call. We will keep working on this.
Other solutions presented: protections for ratepayers, requests for more extensive data (on leaks, recordings of consumption, trends over the years, etc.), a citizens’ Bill of Rights, better communication about the DropCountr app and the “why” behind the plan, an audit from an independent plumber on alleged leaks in dispute, and a legal opinion from the Parish Attorney as to whether the Parish can set up a fund to help vulnerable citizens fix leaks and make repairs so they don’t get their water shut off or lose their homes. A little empathy and assistance could go a long way. I applaud my colleagues Councilmembers Timmy Kerner, Deano Bonano, and Byron Lee, for many of these pragmatic proposals.
Further, Councilmember Kerner and I proposed a reexamination of the rate schedule. And other Councilmembers agreed that we should look into pausing or scaling back future annual water rate increases depending on the results of the rate study, as long as capital projects are not harmed.
As I said yesterday, we can’t discount that people are feeling unheard and have needs that we need to address. If we need to tweak the rates or pull back on the rate increases in some manner because the community just can’t bear the cost, then we need to find a balance of improving our infrastructure and charging a fair rate. It’s not an all-or-nothing discussion.
You can watch a recording of the Council meeting on the Jefferson Parish government website—use key words to search for the water discussion.
Or check out this article for an overview:
https://www.nola.com/news/jefferson_parish/jefferson-parish-council-calls-for-water-billing-fixes/article_5f8501e7-7a52-4230-abc5-c6107e05061f.html
Feel free to email me [email protected] or call our office at 504-736-6615 if you have any questions or concerns.
The parish council approved a resolution to study the parish’s water and sewer rate structure, with more proposals on the way.
