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DEC 1 BOOK 88 PgE 319 7 <br />Chairman Eggert announced that the purpose of the meeting was <br />to educate and inform the new commissioners of the Utilities <br />Department's rate structure and method of billing, as well as to <br />answer questions posed by the public. <br />Utility Services Director Terry Pinto gave a brief history of <br />the Utilities Department. He then explained the charges and rate <br />structure. The impact fee is a charge to cover the cost of the <br />core system. There is a base facility charge which includes the <br />cost of maintaining the grounds, operation of the facility, labor, <br />chemicals and electricity. There is also a monthly charge for <br />flow. He pointed out that utilities service is the most regulated <br />industry in the country. We must have licensed operators and be <br />fully staffed from the first day of operation. The process of <br />aeration in the huge tanks is constant, whether one gallon or a <br />million gallons go through, and that also is included in the base <br />facility charge. <br />Commissioner Bird asked for an explanation of how the impact <br />fee and rate structure are monitored. <br />Director Pinto explained that the Utilities Department is run <br />as a closed system, with all revenues used exclusively for <br />utilities. There is no way to take a profit and transfer it to <br />another County use. If there is money left over in one year, it <br />automatically rolls as income into the next year and is used to <br />adjust the rates charged to customers of the system. If one <br />customer of the system does not pay his bill, the other customers <br />must pay that portion. <br />Director Pinto explained that while other public service <br />departments may delay repair or replacement of their equipment or <br />facilities, the Utilities Department must maintain the system and <br />repair any failures. He gave the example of potholes in the road. <br />Repair of potholes may be delayed if there is no money for it, but <br />if a water system fails, it must be repaired. If a sewer <br />overflows, it must be fixed immediately. Those costs must be <br />covered in the rate structure. <br />Commissioner Adams asked for a comparison of our charges with <br />the $8 to $15 per month charge that mobile home park residents <br />currently pay. <br />Director Pinto explained that a mobile home park's $8 or $15 <br />per month charge does not represent anything, because the developer <br />charges an extremely low rate as a marketing tool. The developer <br />actually subsidizes the utility system because he is only <br />interested in selling units in his development. Additionally, the <br />utilities which were built by the developers had different <br />requirements with lower standards. The County's utility system had <br />2 <br />