ORDINANCE NO. 090874

Authorizing the Director of Water Services to execute a contract with Mid America Assistance Coalition to administer a low-income assistance program for payment of water bills.

WHEREAS, the Council established the Water Services Utility Funding Task Force to integrate community values into a funding strategy to fund its water, sewer, and stormwater utilities; and

WHEREAS, the Water Services Utility Funding Task Force determined that a customer assistance program to benefit low-income households was needed with any method used to fund the water, sewer, and stormwater utilities; and

WHEREAS, the Water Services Department has developed such a customer assistance program, with eligibility criteria and funded with late payment penalties from water bills, and is ready to retain Mid America Assistance Coalition (MAAC) to administer this program; and

WHEREAS, the Council determines that assisting low-income families with payments of their water bills is a benefit to the water, sewer, and stormwater utilities in that it will decrease collection costs, levels of arrearages, and the number of service disconnections from those financially unable to pay for this essential service, and will also have a positive impact on the departments relationship with the community; NOW, THEREFORE,

BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COUNCIL OF KANSAS CITY:

Section 1. That the Director of Water Services is authorized to execute a contract with MAAC to administer a customer assistance program, which customer service program will be initially funded with $140,000.00 in late payment penalties, less a 10% administrative charge for MAACs services. The Director is authorized to execute two one-year renewals in an amount not to exceed $20,000.00 per month in customer assistance funding.

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I hereby certify that there is a balance, otherwise unencumbered, to the credit of the appropriation to which the foregoing expenditure is to be charged, and a cash balance, otherwise unencumbered, in the treasury, to the credit of the fund from which payment is to be made, each sufficient to meet the obligation hereby incurred.

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Jeffrey A. Yates

Director of Finance

Approved as to form and legality:

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Cecilia Abbott

Assistant City Attorney