Council Rescinds Sewer Use Fee

Wednesday, September 18, 2024

NEWPORT, R.I. -- City Councilors held a special Workshop on Utility Billing on Wednesday, Sept. 18th at which they signaled a desire to repeal a new Base Sewer Use charge that had gone into effect on July 1st.

After listening to resident concerns, City Councilors rescinded the base sewer use charge at their meeting on Wednesday, Sept. 25th in order to revert bills back to the structure that customers had expected prior to the introduction of the base sewer use charge in July.

Here's what else Newport Water Division customers need to know: 

✅ Bills will be delayed until the Council can formally adopt the change back to the old rates, and INTEREST HAS BEEN WAIVED for those who have not paid their previous bills.

✅ We've also suspended utility shut-offs and will be crediting back any undue interest paid as part of future billing cycles.

✅ Finally, depending on the Council's final vote, anyone who was subject to the base use charge of $81.18 can also expect to be refunded in your next bill.

Thank you to everyone who turned out for Wednesday's workshop, and we appreciate your understanding and patience through this process.

If you'd like to watch the meeting in full, head over to www.CityofNewport.com/TV and click on the City Council meeting tab.