A.M. ATL: 💸 Water bill whiplash

Morning, y’all! Expect a steady dose of rain (but high temperatures around 60!) to welcome you back from the weekend.

• The SEC champion Georgia Bulldogs landed at No. 2 in the College Football Playoff bracket and will take on the winner of Indiana and Notre Dame … on New Year’s Day in New Orleans. Carson Beck’s status remains unclear.
• Georgia Tech, meanwhile, will try to vanquish Vanderbilt in the Birmingham Bowl on Dec. 27.

Otherwise, we’ve got the latest on Atlanta’s role in the search for an assassin, immigrants preparing for a second Trump administration and the death of a local movie studio leader. Plus, the winner of our Falcons ticket giveaway!

But first: water pipes and pocketbooks.

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GOING UP (AND UP)

Holy growing water bills, Batman.

We’re previously reported on outgoing DeKalb County CEO Michael Thurmond and his pitch to raise residents’ water and sewer rates by about 19% over the next three years.

A pocketbook bummer, no doubt — but a veritable steal when compared to the new plan under county commission consideration.

• As my colleague Alia Pharr reports, DeKalb leaders are now mulling annual 8% increases for the next 10 years.
• Which means the average residential bill, currently about $69.50, could hit $150 by 2034.

Yowza! And yes, that’s every month.

Why though?

You’ve not doubt heard plenty about the city of Atlanta’s ancient and undermaintained water system. DeKalb’s in dire infrastructure straits, too.

Both the water and sewer systems went decades without proper upgrades. The county’s made notable progress on the sewer front in recent years (thanks to a new consent decree with federal environmental regulators), but is really only beginning to address water pipes.

• All told, we’re talking well north of $1 billion worth of projects just to keep up.

While federal grants are a possibility, most of that money’s gonna have to come from folks like you and me — and the county’s consultant says even the bigger proposed billing increases wouldn’t cover everything.

• Poll: Metro Atlanta residents oppose higher water, sewer rates for upgrades

Thurmond, the term-limited CEO, resisted earlier price hikes until the county could deliver a reasonable level of reliable service.

Admirable? Yes. But a contributor to the current rock-and-a-hard-place situation, too.

Commissioners (who, I should point out, do not seem thrilled about things!) could vote on the increase as soon as Tuesday.

Not signed up yet? What’re you waiting for? Get A.M. ATL in your inbox each weekday morning. And keep scrolling for more news.

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THE WEEK AHEAD

Usher during a previous Atlanta concert in October.

🎶 Today: R&B superstar Usher begins a three-night run of concerts at State Farm Arena.

📈 Tuesday: The aforementioned vote on DeKalb County water and sewer rates could take place. Watch here starting at 9 a.m.

🎸 Wednesday: Mike Cooley of Drive-By Truckers plays his first of two shows at Eddie’s Attic in Decatur. The Hawks (who lost their six-game winning streak last night) visit the Knicks for NBA Cup action.

🦸‍♀️ Thursday: Country groups Sugarland and Little Big Town rock Duluth’s Gas South Arena in Duluth. Anime Weekend Atlanta starts at the Georgia World Congress Center.

🐈‍⬛ Friday: Friday the 13th. Good luck out there.

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FEARING THE FUTURE

Emir Gonzalez , 4, joined protests against anti-immigration laws outside the Georgia state Capitol in May.

As the second Donald Trump administration rapidly approaches, immigrants in Georgia continue preparing for the worst — while advocates urge parents to make plans for their children in case they’re separated.

“We think that what’s coming is really big, and that one nonprofit, or two, or 10 won’t be able to cope,” one leader said. “We’ll need the community itself to join in this effort.”

• Georgia sheriffs say jail space an issue if Trump initiates immigrant detainment plan

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THE SEARCH CONTINUES

The New York Police Department says officers are on the ground in Atlanta as the search for the man accused of killing UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson continues.

• The still-unidentified suspect purportedly traveled to NYC on a Greyhound bus that originated in Atlanta.

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CRIME WATCH

» The GBI made another arrest tied to the South Georgia funeral home where officials found 18 decomposing bodies earlier this year.

» DeKalb County police believe a murder-suicide at an apartment near Flat Shoals Road ended the lives of five people, including 1- and 5-year-old children.

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LAKESIDE LESSONS

The Lekiachvili family on a walk.

Lakeside High student Sophia Lekiachvili died earlier this year in a high-speed crash, a passenger in a car driven by an allegedly intoxicated classmate. Yet another classmate’s parents now stand criminally accused of providing that alcohol.

• In a powerful AJC opinion piece, Lekiachvili’s parents deem the charges part of “setting a precedent for the future” — and urge readers to “treasure every moment you have with the people you love.”
• Keep scrolling for results from last week’s poll on parental culpability when tragedy strikes.

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‘A KIND SOUL’

Steve Mensch, the president of Atlanta’s Tyler Perry Studios, died over the weekend in a Florida plane crash. Perry called him “a kind soul and a great leader.”

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FALLING FAST

Can you guess how the Falcons fared Sunday in Minnesota, based on the photo above?

I’ll tell ya either way: They logged their fourth straight loss, this one an unpleasant 42-21 affair that dropped them out of the division lead.

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ON A HAPPIER NOTE …

I’ve chosen a winner for our Dec. 22 Falcons ticket giveaway!

I loved all three dozen or so entries, including Fredreka reminding me how Falcons are like opossums (they get killed on the road and play dead at home) and Sahera’s galaxy brain meme granting A.M. ATL citywide newsgathering supremacy.

But I have to go with Linda in Covington. Her husband Walter is a decades-long diehard who’s never been to a game.

• “What an awesome gift that would be for his 76th Christmas,” she wrote. “He would be smiling for days!”