John P. McCulloch’s Remarks To The Detroit Board of Water Commissioners Public Hearing on Proposed Rate Increases
Detroit, Michigan
January 23, 2008
Good morning. I’m John McCulloch, the Oakland County Drain Commissioner. I want to thank you for giving me the opportunity to voice some of the concerns of my constituents in Oakland County.
In the past, I’ve made several recommendations to this board. Back in 2004, some of you may recall that I suggested that a moratorium be placed on all future rate hikes until we could get a clearer picture of how the rates are determined. I said, back then, that such a moratorium would benefit all customers of the Detroit Water & Sewerage Department – those who live in the City of Detroit as well as those in its suburbs.
During previous years, I’ve also made recommendations designed to improve service, bolster efficiency, save money and return a measure of confidence and credibility to the rate-setting process. The fact remains that DWSD customers, including many in Oakland County, have consistently seen rates escalate over the years. In some cases, we understand the cause and effect. We can point to aging infrastructure and deferred maintenance as a reason for some of the increases. Unfortunately, unlike the 1970s and ‘80s when most of the infrastructure construction costs were covered by federal funds, today we’re on our own. There are no federal dollars to help us.
As I have said before, no community, whether in Wayne, Oakland, Macomb or any other county can accurately predict what the future holds, in terms of rates, until we understand how they are established. We will never gain that understanding unless there is full disclosure of the actual figures, calculations, formulas and assumptions that went into the rate-setting process.
With so much of the financial burden being increasingly put on the ratepayers, it’s more important than ever that we do what we can to ensure that we’re getting the most out of each dollar.
But rather than hear the story from me, I think you need to go into the communities yourselves to hear first-hand what I’ve been telling you.
It would be particularly helpful if you could listen to the people in their own communities before the rates come out. Oakland County has a representative on the water board, Wayne County has a representative and Macomb County has a representative as well. It would be altogether appropriate for you, as representatives of these counties, to visit individual communities with your water board colleagues to gather the facts. It wouldn’t hurt if you appeared before the Oakland County Board of Commissioners, or the Wayne County Board or the Macomb County Board of Commissioners to listen to what they have to say. You’d get the message first-hand and that might give you pause before recommending additional rate increases.
In closing, I would like to thank you for your time. I also would like to thank Victor Mercado for his contribution toward a spirit of cooperation. On the operational level, I believe Mr. Mercado and I have shown that we can work well together. We may have our differences and may take different approaches, but we’re on the same page when it comes to wanting what’s best for the system and the customers who rely on it.
