Rocky Mount residents demand answers after utility billing error affects about 26,000 accounts

Hundreds of residents pressed the Rocky Mount City Council on a utility-billing error that generated extra or overlapping bills for roughly 26,000 accounts, delivering sharply critical public comments and demanding refunds, clearer explanations and independent oversight.

City Manager Elton Daniels told the council staff is working to correct billing schedules and the customer portal, and that billing schedules "are expected to be in line with the reading schedule within the next 45 to 60 days." He also told residents that if they received a statement showing an incorrect past-due amount and they already paid, "please disregard that past due amount." Daniels said the immediate technical and customer-service fixes include new bill print layouts, portal updates and improvements to phone systems.

When Councilman Blackwell asked about the total value of the additional billing, Daniels said it was "about, approximately $7,500,000." The city attorney advised council members that the city does not have legal authority to selectively forgive charges for a subset of customers, saying, "The city doesn't have authority to forgive utility bills in this circumstance," and citing federal and state constitutional constraints.

Public speakers recounted personal and community impacts: customers described receiving a second bill days after the first, duplicate charges on accounts with no usage, and prolonged waits for customer-service help. Veronica Jennings, a Ward 7 resident, criticized city management and urged a pause on technology purchases until an audit is complete. Earl Jones, who said he previously worked in auditing and billing, urged a switch to a 30–31 day billing cycle so households receive 12 bills a year, not 13. Several speakers warned that medically dependent residents and seniors faced risks if bills led to service disruption.

Calls for independent review were frequent. Eric Wordsworth and other speakers urged a state or independent audit of finances and the billing system; Wordsworth said he wanted an "independent audit of city finances and utility billing by an independent auditor and/or state auditor examination." Several speakers requested clearer, plain-language explanations of what happened and how affected customers would be made whole.

Councilmembers and the manager responded that staff is researching the technical causes and will present findings publicly. The manager committed to provide a layman's explanation at the next council meeting and to supply updates through council meetings and the city's website, customer-service center and direct outreach. The mayor said the auditor was being asked to come in and the council had committed to an independent audit if the city audit could not fully address residents' concerns.

The council did not adopt any immediate forgiveness policy during the meeting; the attorney's advice that the city lacked authority to forgive specific accounts shaped that discussion. Council members asked staff to prepare a timeline of findings, a list of affected accounts by area, and a description of remedies under the city's legal authority. The meeting record also shows multiple residents offering to assist staff and requesting special outreach for elderly or homebound residents.

The council directed staff to continue investigating and to provide regular, public updates; the manager said customer-service staff will have updated information and the manager will deliver an explanation in the next meeting.

The meeting adjourned after the council again thanked residents for engagement and asked for patience while the city works to resolve and communicate about the billing errors.