Houston water customers are starting 2024 just as drained as they were in 2023, trying to resolve inaccurate and unexplained water bills. Investigative reporter Amy Davis is giving you peek inside a water customer’s administrative hearing to dispute his big bill.
One way to fight a high water bill: Administrative hearing
Anyone can anyone request one of these water hearings. It is the end of the line in terms of recourse if you think you are being charged for water you didn’t actually use.
After disputing his high water bill for 10 months David Daniels dialed in to what was supposed to be his administrative hearing to finally settle the matter. What happened next can be described as maddening and mind numbing. It was 28 minutes Daniels will never get back.
David Daniels is a landlord. Four small townhomes in Spring Branch share the same water meter.
Since 2020 they’ve used an average of 9,000 to 12,000 gallons of water each month. Daniels divides the $200 bill so each tenant pays about $50. Until last February when the Houston water department charged him for 56,000 gallons of water.
$869 deducted from his bank account.
“That’s like two Olympic swimming pools coming out of this property,” Daniels said.
Daniels followed the steps spelled out in the city code. He checked for leaks but found none. The city re-read his meter and said it was fine.
He requested a water meter accuracy test and told the city he wanted to be present for it.
And he asked for a ton of other records in September to get to the bottom of the large bill.
“I wanted to have that information in front of me so I could speak educated over my account,” he said.
While he waited, the city approved his request for an exceptional circumstances adjustment to his bill and credited him a whopping $88.
“The explanation made absolutely no sense from the representative on the phone. She couldn’t articulate how that calculation was come up with.”
The next and final step to dispute his bill was an administrative hearing by phone on November 30th.
Recorded call shows how frustrating it can be during a city administrative review meeting
Hearing administrator: “Mrs. Elizabeth Orozco is the city’s representative. And she is going to present the city’s evidence and testimony first.”
Daniels asked the hearing administrator and Elizabeth Orozco (city representative) for the records he requested months earlier. Here’s more from the recorded call:
Orozco: “You’re right, Mr. Daniels. I overlooked that email. I didn’t see that. I saw the email, but I didn’t think I had seen the email, but I missed it. Honestly, I missed it.”
Hearing administrator: “Ms. Orozco, was a bench test performed?”
Orozco: “Uhh...I think it was. I’ve been so sick. Honestly, I can’t remember but I think it was. I think it was.”
Hearing administrator: ‘Why don’t we go ahead, we’ll hold the hearing today.”
“This was definitely not a fair process,” said Daniels.
KPRC 2 Investigates has heard this claim before. Daniels’ recording gives it some credence.
“It’s a complete waste of time. It’s like being led blindly into a courtroom not knowing what you’re about to be charged with or what evidence is going to be produced and then asking to represent yourself with no ammunition if you will. No documentation, no back-up, no support.”
But it gets worse. After more than five minutes of testimony from Orozco during the hearing the administrator pipes up.
Administrator: “Ok. I’ve been out of the meeting this entire time trying to get back in so any conversations that have taken place I have not heard. I got disconnected and no one allowed me back in.”
Orozco: “You want me to start all over?”
“I wanted to navigate that myself to see if it was a fair process to see if when my mom gets a high water bill, she can defend herself. And I’m her to tell you, there’s no chance that that’s happening,” said Daniels.
After the failed hearing the city sent Daniels the records he had requested.
They show on October 19th more than a month before his hearing, the city did test his meter without him. His meter failed the test.
Later a city spokesperson told me by email that Daniels’ meter had been “under” registering the amount of water his tenants were using.
The city denied any wrongdoing but said customer account services is “working to improve communications with customers.”
The very next day after the city sent us the statement, Daniels received a credit to his account for $726.72. A water department employee told him those changes the city council approved to the code in December allowed them to increase his bill adjustment.
Hear the full call by clicking on the box below:
KPRC ‘DRAINED’ Investigation into water bill issues
If you have a water bill issue you need help with, check out the ‘DRAINED’ section of our website. If you still need help, email me at ADavis@kprc.com and Producer Andrea Slaydon at Aslaydon@kprc.com.
Full statement from City of Houston
Houston Public Works is committed to providing accurate water bills for more than 500,000 City of Houston water customers every month. Customer Account Services (CAS) performed an Administrative Review on David Daniels’ account after he contested his February 2023 bill. CAS determined that the meter was read properly and the account was billed correctly. Mr. Daniels requested a test of his meter. Any test of a customer’s water meter requires CAS to remove the meter from the property. This was scheduled but Mr. Daniels was not contacted on the date/time of the removal. CAS apologizes for this oversight and is working to improve communication with customers.
Once we recognized this error, our team contacted Mr. Daniels and asked if he wanted to be present for the meter testing at our CAS facility, and he declined. (Amy here- It’s important to note the city had already tested Daniels’ meter. They called him after his Administrative Hearing and after KPRC 2 contacted the water department to ask if he wanted to come witness a “restest.”) The meter was tested at three flow rates and failed the low water flow rate, registering only 69% of water flowing through the meter. Meters under-registering the amount of water flowing through the meter result in accounts being billed less than the amount of water used.
Since there was no evidence of a leak, Mr. Daniels qualified for an Exceptional Circumstances Adjustment per City Code. He applied and it was approved, removing $37.62 in water and $51.06 in wastewater charges. City Code for an Exceptional Circumstances Adjustment (at the time of Mr. Daniel’s Administrative Review) provide relief and adjustments for unexplained water usage over five times a customer’s average usage. His average monthly usage is 10,000 gallons of water. Per city ordinance, any charges over 50,000 gallons were removed. This resulted in 6,000 gallons of water being removed. Mr. Daniels contested the results of the Administrative Review, resulting in an Administrative Hearing.
There were technical difficulties during Mr. Daniel’s Administrative Hearing, and Mr. Daniels opted to reschedule the hearing. The Administrative Hearing representative will send the requested records to Mr. Daniels. CAS is continuing to review the account to see if additional adjustments will be made since the City Ordinance changes on December 13, 2023.
Houston Public Works encourages anyone with questions about their water bill to contact Customer Account Services at 713.371.1400.
Erin Jones
Public Information Officer
City of Houston | Houston Public Works