An Atlanta vote next year on a sales tax to raise $480 million for sewer upgrades could influence how much tens of thousands of people outside the city pay for water and sewage.
Atlanta’s voters, already weathering the highest combined water and sewage bills in the country, will be asked to extend a 1 cent sales tax. If they balk, water and sewer rates would have to rise immediately by about 20 percent, city officials have warned.
Think the dilemma is just an Atlanta problem? Think again. If you’re outside the city, your now-affordable sewer bills could rise.
The tentacles of Atlanta’s water and sewage system extend deep into the metro region. The city provides drinking water or sewage treatment to cities as small as Fairburn and larger ones such as College Park and East Point, as well as unincorporated parts of Clayton, DeKalb and Fayette counties. More than 70,000 people live in the far-flung service areas. That’s in addition to 420,000 in Atlanta and nearly 94,000 in Sandy Springs, which uses Atlanta’s water and sewer systems.
Atlanta’s water and sewer bills have led to thousands of complaints against the city: 31,000 in just two years between 2009 and 2010. Water bills have sown discord between Atlanta and Sandy Springs. And for water-thirsty manufacturers, they could be job-killers.
In Thursday's newspaper, the AJC takes a deep look at water rates paid in city of Atlanta compared to other metro areas. It's a story you'll get only by picking up a copy of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution or logging on to the paper's iPad app. Subscribe today.
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