Water Sector News
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Metro Detroit cities, townships at odds over $2 water bill monthly fee
Metro Detroit officials are at odds over proposed legislation that Democratic lawmakers say will make water more affordable for households across Michigan.
City leaders and county representatives from across the region gathered Monday to tout the proposed bills, which they say would help ensure access to a basic right. The support comes as city and township leaders from Macomb County oppose the legislation, saying it would tack on additional fees and duplicate an existing assistance program. Seventeen communities in Macomb have passed resolutions against the bills that some officials say “go too far.”
The wide-ranging legislation — introduced in the Michigan House and Senate last fall — seeks to create an affordability fund that water providers could tap to lower bills for low-income residents, a $2 monthly fee for water customers across the state to support the fund and ramped-up notifications for households before water is disconnected.