Report: DeKalb’s decisions heightened water billing crisis
In the scramble to correct high water bills in DeKalb County, government officials made it worse, according to an internal report.
Efforts to double-check bills for accuracy created backlogs. A decision to withhold questionable bills resulted in more than 28,000 customers missing bills since last fall. Attempts to upgrade to new water meters created confusion among meter readers.
The county’s missteps are detailed in a 26-page report titled “Water Billing Analysis Summary,” obtained by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution under Georgia’s Open Records Act.
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- DeKalb properties gain value, likely resulting in higher taxes
- DeKalb Sheriff Mann prepares for trial after indecency arrest
- High pay of tax collectors in DeKalb and Fulton questioned
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Read the DeKalb Water Billing Analysis
About the Author
Mark Niesse is an enterprise reporter and covers elections and Georgia government for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and is considered an expert on elections and voting. Before joining the AJC, he worked for The Associated Press in Atlanta, Honolulu and Montgomery, Alabama. He also reported for The Daily Report and The Santiago Times in Chile.
