Council reviews proposed utility-billing code cleanup; staff recommends keeping flat deposit policy

City utility billing director Cindy Robbins presented proposed updates to the city's utility-billing ordinance intended to clarify deposit policy and remove outdated references to credit-report determinations.

Robbins recounted the city's 2016 move to a flat $150 deposit and said the change reduced collections: "The three years leading up to October 2016, the average that we were sending into collections was $63,000... the last three years... it's $24,000." She recommended cleaning the ordinance language to reflect current practice and avoid pulling consumers' credit reports.

Council members raised several operational and equity questions: whether deposits earn interest, how to handle deceased-account billing and property/title transitions, how the city leverages a $12,000 annual contribution to CICA (a local assistance group) to help households on the verge of shutoff, and whether returning deposits after a sustained on-time payment history would be appropriate. Robbins said the city currently does not routinely refund deposits, citing collection reductions and administrative complexity; she also described limited payment-arrangement authority (arrangements generally kept within a billing cycle). The meeting included detailed operational questions about average delinquent balances, payment plans and exceptions for hardship cases.

Council asked staff to bring any proposed ordinance language and supporting financial calculations back for formal consideration and possible adoption on a subsequent council agenda.