HATFIELD — Residents who have both town water and sewer will be paying between $100 and $120 more annually, based on increased rates approved by the Select Board that aim to cover the costs of labor and expenses, and ensure there are sufficient reserves for repairs and capital projects.
Following a June 30 public hearing , board members voted 3-0 to support recommendations from DPC Engineering LLC of Longmeadow to increase the sewer rate by 8.5%, from $14.98 per 100 cubic feet to $16.25 per 100 cubic feet, and to raise the water rate by 5.2%, from $7.49 per 100 cubic feet to $7.88 per 100 cubic feet.
The new rates went into effect July 1, meaning that any water or sewage going through the system at that point will be charged at the higher amount. Currently, average single-family households hooked up to both town water and sewer pay about $1,536 annually.
Select Board Chairman Luke Longstreeth said the town will be in a more difficult position in the coming years if rates are not adjusted.
“Not increasing the sewer as what is recommended is putting us in a position to do a very large increase in a few years,” Longstreeth said
Board member Ed Jaworski said there was a time when the board held off rate adjustments, but the purpose of conversations with the consultant in recent years is to have incremental increases so there is not a major jump in any one year.
Board member Julia Frisby said her concern is that water and sewer rates are already high and she would have preferred to limit the sewer increase to 5.2%, as well.
“I don’t think we want to keep telling the town every year that it’s going up again and again,” Frisby said.
David Prickett, president of DPC Engineering, said when Town Meeting approved the budgets for both water and sewer operations, the rates needed to be changed to collect sufficient money to meet expenses.
Combined, the budgets are up 13%, from $1.15 million to $1.3 million.
But he added that it’s important to also get to $1 million in reserves for both water and sewer. This will allow the town to pay for unanticipated capital expenses, such as a break in a sewer line or a water main.
“When it does fail, the general fund doesn’t want to jump in and pay for it,” Prickett said. “That could be the catastrophic event that wipes it out.”
According to information supplied by the town, the biggest increases in sewer expenses are sludge hauling, which went up by about 36% from $55,000 to $75,000, and a $10,000, or 10% increase in fuel costs, and setting aside $66,000 for the wastewater treatment plant project as required by a U.S. Department of Agriculture loan.
Both the water and sewer budgets also include a portion of the salary for Department of Public Works Director Marlo Warner.
The proposed rate adjustments from DPC Engineering were based on both high and low water consumption. If the strong water consumption that occurred in 2025 continues this year, Prickett said the revenues could exceed estimates.
Warner said having higher retained earnings in the water and sewer budgets could help the town avoid borrowing costs when there are emergency repairs that need to be done, or equipment that has to be purchased.
