A wastewater impact study executed in Argyle revealed that a total of $229,443 was wrongfully charged to homes in the Harvest development for wastewater since 2018.
Residents can request a refund through Dec. 31 by filling out a form on the Belmont Freshwater Supply District No. 2 website.
"I feel bad that [customers] were overcharged," council member Casey Stewart said. "I want to put a little bit of emphasis on the refund process ... we want to process every refund we possibly can."
What happened?
Argyle provides wastewater services for residents within the certificate of convenience and necessity service area, which is located both within and outside of the municipal town limits, according to city documents.
The town partners with Argyle Water Supply Corporation to bill residents for the wastewater services provided. Different fees are calculated by Argyle staff based on where a customer is located and whether the customer is commercial or residential. Though Harvest is in the extraterritorial jurisdiction, residents pay the same rates for wastewater services as those within Argyle's town limits, Christopher Williams, manager at Raftelis Financial Consultants said.
Argyle communicates with the Argyle Water Supply Corporation about what rate to charge customers. Through this communication, a misunderstanding occurred causing the Argyle Water Supply Corporation to incorrectly bill Harvest residents, which town staff didn’t catch until years later, Argyle Financial Director Marissa Barrett said.
“The matter is outside of Argyle Water Supply’s control,” an Argyle Water Supply representative said. “We bill according to what the town of Argyle tells us and once we collect those fees, we pass them directly to the town of Argyle as a third party.”
The breakdown
Raftelis Financial Consultants Inc. completed a study from 2018-2024 for Harvest showing the household units affected by incorrect wastewater billings.
The research showed how many household units in Harvest were:
Harvest also developed more houses over the years with a total of 117 housing units in 2018 and 891 total housing units in 2024.
The study looked into the accounts that were billed incorrectly since 2018, which means that housing units could have had multiple accounts at one location if residents moved out and new families moved in.
The study showed the total customers impacted by incorrect billing and the total refund amount owed to the Harvest community each year.
What’s next?
Argyle Water Supply Corporation sends a revenue check to the town every month based on their billing cycle and Argyle will be in charge of giving refunds.
In addition, Argyle town staff is keeping a closer eye on what rates customers are being charged to prevent this from happening again, Barrett said.
Raftelis Financial Consultants will also provide information on if any customers were billed less than they were supposed to be for wastewater and will provide information to the council when the study is finished.
Additionally, they will perform a system-wide analysis to see if any other mistakes occurred for customers.
Residents can request a refund through Dec. 31 by filling out a form on the Belmont Freshwater Supply District No. 2 website.
"I feel bad that [customers] were overcharged," council member Casey Stewart said. "I want to put a little bit of emphasis on the refund process ... we want to process every refund we possibly can."
What happened?
Argyle provides wastewater services for residents within the certificate of convenience and necessity service area, which is located both within and outside of the municipal town limits, according to city documents.
The town partners with Argyle Water Supply Corporation to bill residents for the wastewater services provided. Different fees are calculated by Argyle staff based on where a customer is located and whether the customer is commercial or residential. Though Harvest is in the extraterritorial jurisdiction, residents pay the same rates for wastewater services as those within Argyle's town limits, Christopher Williams, manager at Raftelis Financial Consultants said.
Argyle communicates with the Argyle Water Supply Corporation about what rate to charge customers. Through this communication, a misunderstanding occurred causing the Argyle Water Supply Corporation to incorrectly bill Harvest residents, which town staff didn’t catch until years later, Argyle Financial Director Marissa Barrett said.
“The matter is outside of Argyle Water Supply’s control,” an Argyle Water Supply representative said. “We bill according to what the town of Argyle tells us and once we collect those fees, we pass them directly to the town of Argyle as a third party.”
The breakdown
Raftelis Financial Consultants Inc. completed a study from 2018-2024 for Harvest showing the household units affected by incorrect wastewater billings.
The research showed how many household units in Harvest were:
- charged incorrect rates the whole year
- charged either the correct or incorrect rate at various times throughout the year
- consistently charged correctly
Harvest also developed more houses over the years with a total of 117 housing units in 2018 and 891 total housing units in 2024.
The study showed the total customers impacted by incorrect billing and the total refund amount owed to the Harvest community each year.
Argyle Water Supply Corporation sends a revenue check to the town every month based on their billing cycle and Argyle will be in charge of giving refunds.
In addition, Argyle town staff is keeping a closer eye on what rates customers are being charged to prevent this from happening again, Barrett said.
Raftelis Financial Consultants will also provide information on if any customers were billed less than they were supposed to be for wastewater and will provide information to the council when the study is finished.
Additionally, they will perform a system-wide analysis to see if any other mistakes occurred for customers.
