High quarterly bills hit as Worcester seeks to cover water, sewer operations
Public water and sewer customers this week vented their frustrations to the Worcester County Commissioners over higher quarterly bills, with some alleging that they had no notice of the recently implemented rate hikes.
Newark resident Susan Age was among a handful of complainants at Tuesday’s meeting, telling the commissioners that her third-quarter bill went up 400%. With her home and another empty lot she owns, “I’m paying $697 a quarter for nothing.”
“We don’t have million-dollar homes,” she said. “Our system is old, our growth is limited, and we can’t carry on this very expensive water and sewer.”
Even with across-the-board rate increases taking effect this fall, Worcester County’s water and sewer districts will still see a collective $1.38 million revenue shortfall for fiscal year 2026, county officials said this week.
The commissioners budgeted $1.13 million from the general fund to cover most of the deficit for this fiscal year. The Edgewater Acres area will get a $140,000 loan and the West Ocean City area has adequate reserves to cover its deficit, according to Enterprise Fund Controller Quinn Dittrich.
Water and sewer rates had not been increased in a dozen years for each of the county’s 11 sewer districts, which are meant to be self-sustaining and supported by customer revenue. But, last year, county officials learned that seven of those districts had gone into the red, mostly because they simply didn’t have enough customers to cover costs.
you pay the lowest piggyback tax in the state. quit your bitching!