Residents leery of water boards management.

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FRANKFORT, Ky. — The Kentucky Public Service Commission has granted Mountain Water District’s request to decide its request for a rate increase without a public hearing, but is not ready to rule on the matter yet.

In its application filed in November, Mountain Water asked for permission to raise rates across the board. Their proposal would raise residential rates by 22 percent, jumping from about $45 to nearly $55. Commercial and other accounts would also see raises, ranging from 24 to 35 percent, and the wholesale rate charged to Elkhorn City, Jenkins, Martin County and Mingo County would jump 13.5 percent.

Earlier this month, Mountain Water asked the PSC to forego a public hearing on the request, because no one filed to intervene in the case to object to the request.

Mountain Water said its 809-page application and responses to three requests for additional information should be adequate for the PSC to render a decision. The utility also asked the PSC to close the case file except for the submission of final reports.

Last week, the PSC agreed to decide the case without a hearing, but declined to close the case. Instead, the commission ordered Mountain Water to continue to respond to requests for additional information about the application.

No timeline for when the case could be decided was released.

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FRANKFORT, Ky. — Mountain Water District is asking the Kentucky Public Service Commission to skip holding a hearing on its current request for a rate increase and issue a ruling based on the case records.

In its application filed in November, Mountain Water asked for permission to raise rates across the board.
Their proposal would raise residential rates by 22 percent, jumping from about $45 to nearly $55. Commercial and other accounts would also see raises, ranging from 24 to 35 percent, and the wholesale rate charged to Elkhorn City, Jenkins, Martin County and Mingo County would jump 13.5 percent.

The utility says there is no need for a hearing on the matter, because no one filed to intervene in the case to object to the request. Mountain Water says its 809-page application and responses to three requests for additional information should be adequate for the PSC to render a decision.

The company also asks the PSC to issue its decision by March 31.

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After weeks of water issues, city should return to normal by Tuesday.

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FRANKFORT, Ky. — Mountain Water District has filed an application with the Kentucky Public Service Commission, asking to raise rates by more than 20 percent.

The application, filed on Monday, would raise residential rates by more than 22 percent. That would bring the average residential customer bill from nearly $45 to nearly $55, an increase of about $10.

Commercial and other types of customers would also see increases, ranging from about 24 percent to nearly 35 percent. The proposal also calls for a 13.5 percent increase to the wholesale rate charged to Elkhorn City, Jenkins, Martin County and Mingo County.

The utility says the increase is necessary “because its current rates do not produce sufficient revenues to meet its reasonable operating expenses, service its long-term and short-term debt and provide for adequate working capital.”

The new rates would go into effect Dec. 10, unless the PSC suspends them during its review.

You can follow the case on the PSC website at https://psc.ky.gov/Case/ViewCaseFilings/2025-00327.

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FRANKFORT, Ky. — The Kentucky Public Service Commission has denied Southern Water and Sewer District’s request for a 5.28 percent rate increase. Instead, the commission authorized a rate increase of nearly five times that amount.

At the same time, the commission is ordering the utility to work to resolve its longstanding problems with losing massive amounts of water.

Under the PSC’s order, Southern will see rates climb by 23.23 percent, along with the implementation of a $6.83 water loss surcharge. That means the average residential bill will climb 26.12 percent to $68.80, an increase of $14.25.

The commission’s order limits the water loss surcharge to either five years or until the fee generates $2.2 million. That money will be set aside to deal with the utility’s water loss and cannot be spent without prior PSC approval.

The PSC considers water loss of 15 percent or below to be reasonable. But a review of the past four years shows that Southern has been losing nearly 57 percent of its water. That results in Southern spending about $1 million a year to produce water, with about $600,000 of that amount lost.

The PSC plans to monitor Southern’s efforts to resolve its water-loss problems. The commission gave the utility 150 days to obtain the services of an engineering firm that will develop a 15-to-20-year plan to address its water loss. That plan is required to be filed with the PSC 240 days after the engineering firm is procured. Once that plan has been approved by the PSC, Southern will then be required to file an execution plan.

As reported last week, Southern is also under investigation for implementing a “disconnect fee” without prior approval. While the PSC has now given its approval of that fee, the utility’s manager and board members each face up to $2,500 in fines and removal from their positions if the commission determines they willfully circumvented the approval process.

Copies of the PSC’s rate increase and water-loss plan orders are attached below:

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McDOWELL, Ky. — After an earlier request for a rate increase was shot down, Southern Water and Sewer District in Floyd County is trying again.

Southern originally filed its application back in September, asking the Kentucky Public Service Commission to approve rates that were more than 28 percent higher. Those rates would have raised customer bills from nearly $60 a month to more than $75 a month.

The PSC requires utilities to base their rate requests on actual revenues and expenses from the preceding calendar year, but Southern used 2022 data in its application instead of 2023. For that reason, the PSC rejected the application and gave Southern a chance to reapply using the correct data.

With the new application, the proposed rates are significantly lower than the earlier application, coming in at 15 percent. However, the new application also includes a $6.83 water loss reduction surcharge which nearly makes up the difference. As a result, the new rate request would still bring the average customer bill to nearly $75 a month, a difference only 57 cents cheaper than the original request.

The PSC will now review the application and schedule a hearing to consider the request.

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FRANKFORT, Ky. — A proposed rate increase for Southern Water and Sewer District has been rejected, at least temporarily, because the utility used the wrong data in its application.

Southern filed an application with the Kentucky Public Service Commission last month, asking to Raise both its customer charge and water rate by more than 28 percent. If approved, that would raise the average residential customer bill from about $60 a month to more than $75.

But last week, the PSC rejected the application because Southern used old data to justify the request.

When filing for a rate adjustment, utilities are required to include data from their most recent calendar year to show costs and revenues to justify the increase. But in its application, Southern used data from 2022, instead of 2023.

Southern has been ordered to resubmit its application using the correct data as soon as possible. The PSC’s order also mandates if the 2023 data changes the required rates, Southern must publish a new public notice for customers within 45 days of its application.

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McDOWELL, Ky. — Some Floyd County residents could soon see their water bills going up, if regulators approve a requested rate increase.

Southern Water and Sewer District filed an application to raise rates with the Kentucky Public Service Commission on Wednesday. The utility is proposing to increase both its customer charge and water rate by more than 28 percent.

That would result in the average customer using 4,000 gallons of water a month paying more than $15 extra each month. The average bill would increase from about $60 a month to more than $75.

Southern says in its application that the higher rates are necessary to restore the utility to sound financial condition and keep it in compliance with the Safe Drinking Water Act. The new rates would generate more than $880,000 a year in additional revenue.

After reviewing the application, the PSC can choose to approve, deny or alter the rates. The agency has not yet set a schedule for reviewing the request.

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FRANKFORT, Ky. — With temperatures expected to plummet into the single digits overnight, many people around the region could wake up with frozen or burst water pipes in the morning.

To avoid falling victim to that scenario, the Kentucky Division of Water has some tips for keeping water running in your home:

• Most people know to allow a trickle of water to run during the coldest times, but which faucet you choose can make a difference. It’s best to use a cold faucet that is farthest from the water meter or one that has frozen in the past. This will keep the water moving so that it cannot freeze and will help relieve pressure should ice form in the pipes.
• Wrap both hot and cold water pipes with insulation. You can also use layers of newspapers, but be sure to wrap the newspapers in plastic afterward, to prevent them from getting wet and freezing.
• Place a lamp with a 60-watt bulb in the potential problem area to warm the walls and pipes. Make sure there are no combustible materials near the bulb.
• If the crawl access is inside the home, set a fan in the opening to blow warm air from the home to the foundation. Do not use a fan when the access is in an unheated garage or outside the home.
• If bathroom or kitchen pipes are inside of cabinets, open the cabinet doors. This will warm air to circulate around the pipes.
• Have the home’s exterior walls insulated. Caulk and seal around doors, windows, house faucets and outside outlets.

If your pipes do freeze, there are also several things to keep in mind when trying to thaw them. First, turn all faucets in the house completely on and remove the insulation from the pipes.

If there is no standing water, you can use a hair dryer or electric heating pad to heat the pipes. If there is standing water, you do not want to use such devices to prevent electric shock. Instead, your best bet is to pour hot water over the pipes or wrap them in towels that have been soaked in hot water.

In either case, you should never use a blowtorch to thaw pipes, as it can rapidly transform water inside the pipe from ice to boiling, causing the pipe to explode. Likewise, you should not use kerosene or propane heaters or any open flame device, as they can cause a risk of fire or carbon monoxide poisoning.

Finally, if you are unable to locate or reach a section of frozen pipe, your best bet is to hand the problem over to a licensed plumber.

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