You may soon notice a change in your water bill. Houston Mayor John Whitmire announced that the city’s water department is ahead of schedule in replacing broken remote-read sensors attached to residential water meters.
The project, part of the Water Bill Improvement Plan launched in April, stems from a two-year KPRC 2 investigation into water bill inaccuracies and meter reading errors. Initially slated for completion by the end of December, the mayor confirmed on Wednesday that repairs will be finalized by Thanksgiving, a full month ahead of schedule.
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“When we started this journey, the previous leadership estimated it would take five years to replace all the broken devices,” Whitmire said. “We are proud to announce this significant progress, which ensures fair and accurate billing for our residents.”
The accelerated timeline follows changes in leadership at Houston Public Works. In April, the former director resigned amid public criticism, and Randy Macchi was officially confirmed as the new director during Wednesday’s City Council meeting.
Macchi emphasized the department’s renewed focus on customer service.
“Some of the things that we needed to do there weren’t just related to infrastructure. It was related to customer service. We’d lost our way in terms of how we treated the customer when they came to us with a problem. We forgot that we were there to serve them, not just to collect money from them,” Macchi said.
What this means for Houston water customers
For many Houston residents, this means an end to water bills based on estimated usage.
The city has assured residents that if they used more water than estimated during the repair period, they will not be back-billed for the difference.
“All customers will soon see bills reflecting actual water usage,” the mayor’s office confirmed.
The improvements come after years of frustration for residents over inaccurate billing and delayed repairs.
If your lower bills based on your estimated set usage haven’t already ended, they will soon. All water customers will return to bills based on your actual usage. Remember, if you used more water than the city estimated during the set usage periods, the water department said they will not back-bill for that amount.
Do you have an issue you would like Amy to look into? Email ADavis@kprc.com. You can also email Investigates producer Andrea Slaydon at ASlaydon@kprc.com.
