MOYIE SPRINGS — The city of Moyie Springs held a public hearing Feb. 17 for a proposed sewer rate increase that could raise monthly bills by more than 75% to address a loss of revenue by the sewer system.  

The hearing occurred to gather public input on two proposed rate increases — $80 per month if a Department of Environmental Quality loan would not be forgiven or $60 per month if the loan was forgiven by DEQ.  

The current sewer rate is $45 per connection and has remained at that cost for roughly a decade.  

The loan from DEQ helped fund the installation of the sewer system. It totals about $724,000 and carries a 1.75% interest rate over 30 years.  At the time of publishing, DEQ has not responded to the city’s request to forgive the loan on the sewer project. 

Currently, the city is losing $11,521.45 annually from the sewer system, according to documents shared by the council. 

“We can’t keep losing that much every month,” Moyie Springs Mayor Geoff Hollenbeck said. “This number affects all the citizens because part of the money they’re paying in taxes and everything else is going to cover that shortfall.” 

The sewer system serves 112 connections near City Hall but has a capacity of 200. As of 2020, about 91% of residents living in the sewer service area were classified as low- to moderate-income, compared to 36% of the overall Moyie Springs population. 

“Most of those are retired people with fixed incomes. It puts more pressure on us because we know there’s limited income. We didn’t even want to go to $60, but it’s just what it is,” Hollenbeck said. “Obviously, if we can expand the number of connections, then there is potential we could lower it later. This $80 is our worst-case scenario.” 

Three people, including two residents living in the sewer service area, spoke at the public hearing. One individual said he was frustrated with the significant increase in sewer rates, as well as rising operating costs. 

Council members said operating costs are higher because the sewer system is relatively new and requires regular maintenance checks. 

While $53.57 per connection is the amount the city needs to break even, an additional amount is included to cover maintenance and build a reserve fund of $7 a month for each connection.

Hollenbeck said he hopes the rates will remain stable for a long time or even decrease.  

Hollenbeck said council meetings and public hearings are important, so that information does not become distorted. 

“It’s like when your kid is playing the telephone game — you say one sentence and by the time it gets to the end, it’s completely different.” 

A decision has yet to be made on the rate increases.