The Benton City Council opted to table three ordinances that would raise utility rates for Benton Utilities customers at a meeting on Monday night.
The council agreed to table the ordinance after being informed that the billing software Benton Utilities uses couldn’t be updated to charge for the new wastewater rates within the 30 days set out by the ordinance.
The council rejected an ordinance last May that would have raised rates for Benton Utilities customers, citing inflation as the reason for doing so.
The ordinances tabled on Monday night were first read at the November council meeting. During the second reading in December, members approved amendments to each of the ordinances that would set the rates for water, wastewater and electricity.
For water users, the increase would be 10 percent in 2023, another 5 percent in 2024, another 2 percent in 2025 and another 1 percent increase plus the Consumer Price Index for inflation in 2026.
For wastewater users, the increase would be 17.4 percent in 2023, another 9 percent in 2024, another 5 percent in 2025 and a 1 percent increase plus inflation in 2026. For electric users, the rates would increase by 2 percent in 2023, another 2 percent in 2024, another 2 percent in 2025 and 1 percent plus inflation in 2026.
According to Benton City Attorney Baxter Drennon, the rates are roughly the same as originally proposed for customers in 2023. However, the increases are roughly cut in half for 2024 and 2025.
The council approved resolution one which establishes rules for conducting council and committee meetings. With the passage of this ordinance, the council has created two new committees of the city council, an animal control committee and the committee on commissions.
Previously the animal control committee and community services committee were one in the same, but now they will operate separately.
The council met on Jan. 5 to discuss resolution one. During that meeting, Farmer requested the creation of an animal control committee and a “committee on commissions.”
Council members agreed to a motion that would create the “Committee on Commissions” which will review the recommendations from committees and commissions before the items go to Benton City Council.
The committee on commissions will have five members and would be able to amend resolutions and ordinances before they go to the city council meetings for final approval. The committee would also provide recommendations for how to vote on specific ordinances and resolutions to the council in the form of a pass/fail recommendation.
These changes were officially approved on Monday night.
Farmer said on Jan. 5 that the reason for the committee on commissions is because in the past some of the council members have been “blindsided” by resolutions or ordinances that show up on the city council agendas at the last minute.
The new committee would allow council members to meet and discuss ordinances and resolutions before voting on them at the city council meetings.
The resolution also slightly changes the structure of committees. It requires that each committee and commission have a chair and a vice-chair.
