The city of Clinton wrote off $17,372.72 in unpaid water, sewer and garbage charges for the period of July 1, 2007 through June 30, 2008, upon the City Council’s action. For audit purposes, city staff annually requests the Council approve the “charge-off” of unpaid utility and garbage fees greater than a year old.
That action normally comes some time in May or June, as one budget year comes to an end and another begins.
In addition to being more than a year old, the charge-offs apply to those bills greater than $50, city manager John Connet said. City staff will continue to seek payment of fees through the state debt setoff program.
North Carolina local governments have collected more than $65 million in overdue debt since 2002 through that program, the N.C. Local Government Debt Setoff Clearinghouse, which is a joint project of the N.C. League of Municipalities and the N.C. Association of County Commissioners.
According to the program, participating local governments submit outstanding delinquent debts of $50 or more to the clearinghouse. If an individual is due a personal income tax refund from the N.C. Department of Revenue or winnings from the N.C. Education Lottery, the debt, along with a fee, will be deducted from their refund or prize money.
“They will try to collect (the money owed),” said Connet.
The city manager noted a trend in the charge-offs recently, and notably in the last fiscal year — one that reflects an increase in the number of unpaid bills, especially from businesses.
“We are seeing more charge-offs, especially in businesses, than we typically have seen,” the city manager remarked. “We are seeing a little higher number from these businesses than in years past and we’ll be examining our customer service policy.”
The city of Clinton’s Customer Service and Policy Procedures offers uniform procedures for providing utility service, to include the city’s responsibility for providing that service and the customer’s responsibility for paying for it. The 16-page document provides stipulations for methods of payment and modifications of payment deadlines taking into account the needs and requirements of individual customers.
Betty Brewer, the city’s finance director, said Clinton has been able to collect a percentage of the funds deemed uncollectible through the state debt setoff program, even after they are written off.
“They’ve done really good for us,” said Brewer. “So if we have a Social Security number or federal ID number and the bill is $50 or larger, it is sent to them. The city is not going to collect all of it back, but the debt setoff has worked well for us.”
Looking at financial records, Brewer estimated roughly $12,000 collected in the previously unpaid bill amounts since 2004-05. And, on the city’s end, there is documentation to corroborate non-payment.
“We keep that list,” Brewer noted. “If any of those people check in with us again, they have to pay that outstanding amount to be a customer.”
All totaled, the amount written off in a nearly four-year period, extending from November 1, 2004 to June 30, 2008, is $49,863.94.
Last year, in May 2008, the Council approved writing off $10,779.32, for the period of July 1, 2006 to June 30, 2007. That followed amounts of $7,205.53 in June 2007 (for Nov. 1, 2005 to June 30, 2006) and $14,506.37 in June 2006 (for Nov. 1, 2004 to Oct. 31, 2005).
Of those customers included in this year’s list, which includes accounts from July 1, 2007 to June 30, 2008, several fall under the business umbrella noted by Connet.
The six largest charge-off amounts, in ascending order, came from Just a Dollar for $472.85; Juan Carlos Espinal for $557.34; La Mexicana for $615.44; Faith Worship Center for $657.06; Club Bahia for $708.96; Kerahs Development Co. Inc. for $865.74; and Sumo’s Japanese Steak House in the amount of $1,235.97.
Chris Berendt can be reached at 910-592-8137, ext. 121, or by email at sicrime@myclintonnc.com.
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