Kent County legislators unhappy with explanations on water rate hikes

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WLNE)– A group of Kent County legislators say they’re unsatisfied with explanations from  the Kent County Water Authority on rate hikes seen in constituents’ water bills.

“The Kent County Water Authority is trying to tell elderly customers and other users who haven’t seen a change in their water bills for years that they have to simply accept their latest bills, which simply don’t match their water use patterns,” said Sen. Leonidas Raptakis, in a statement issued Tuesday afternoon.

Raptakis said he’s heard from a number of constituents unhappy with their bills.

That includes an 85-year-old Coventry woman whose bill more than doubled– from $47 in one quarter to $91  in the next, Raptakis said.

Raptkis said the rate hike has variously been attributed to the recent drought, a leak somewhere in the pipes, or increased time at home due to the pandemic.

“It’s time for KWCA to stop making excuses and address this problem before they hit the remaining two-thirds of their service area the next round of outrageous bills,” Raptkis said. “Their customers deserve better and we will not allow this to continue.”

Raptkis said the next step was for constituents to complain with the Division of Public Utilities and Carriers, which can be reached at: http://www.ripuc.ri.gov/consumerinfo/filecomplaint.html.

The statement was issued in conjunction with Rep. Patricia Serpa, Sen. Gordon Rogers, and Rep. George A. Nardone.

Serpa said residents had grown frustrated with efforts to reach Kent County Water Authority.

“Based upon what constituents report back me, it appears that the customers all receive the same generic standard response from the water authority, essentially that the customers are responsible for the dramatic increases,” Serpa said. “This questionable response indicates to me that the KCWA did not pursue these complaints seriously enough. They need to do better.”

The legislators are calling for an investigation into the billing practices, and have asked the board not to shut off water due to a disputed bill from the August through October 2020 quarter.

©WLNE-TV/ABC6 2020