GLYNN COUNTY, Ga. — People who live in Glynn County are forced to pay increased water and sewage bills to help deal with the aging infrastructure, and neighbors tell Action News Jax that their bills are skyrocketing.
"It's just ridiculous. I can't afford to pay it,” Glynn County resident Jackuelin Norman said.
Norman said her water and sewage bill has gone up since the summer.
"It went from us paying $90 a month to $158 this month for the bill," Norman said.
At first, she thought it was temporary.
"I thought it was the summer rates, but then when I got the other bill, it was still high," Norman said.
She’s not the only customer with of the Brunswick-Glynn County Joint Water & Sewer Commission that has come to Action News Jax with concerns about their bills.
So we took their questions to Director of Administration Jay Sellers.
"Utility is essentially underfunded right now," Sellers said.
To keep up with the operation and maintenance, Sellers said everyone’s rates were increased by about 13 percent in July.
“We can't simply put off raising rates. A change had to be made," Sellers said.
He said they need to bring in $20 million a year for the next 30 years to keep up with the demands of their systems.
"To maintain our aging infrastructure, that's a scary number, that's a big number," Sellers said.
After Hurricane Irma in September, Action News Jax reported that power outages forced Glynn County officials to warn customers about water use.
"We lack backup power or really bypass pumping at those stations,” Sellers said.
People were asked to stop showering and avoid flushing their toilets because nearly half of all the pumping stations were without power.
"Even when it rains, it's like everything is flooded. There's no good sewage there also, so I don't understand what the increase is supposed to do," Norman said.
Sellers said that right now, they don’t have the money to get backup power for the pumping stations, but it’s something they are looking into.
They are also working to get a call center up and running to better assist customers with concerns.