February 24, 2014

CONTACT:

deppressoffice@dep.nyc.gov, (718)595-6600

Department of Environmental Protection Announces New, More Efficient Payment Options for Customers

The New York City Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) today announced a number of new and improved payment options for its nearly 836,000 customers.  In addition to upgrades to existing payment options, such as extended hours, a streamlined pay by phone system and a new check processing center on Staten Island, customers can now easily make payments at a new website, with a smartphone or tablet, or in cash at any of the 1,100 Western Union locations throughout New York City.  The new website, DEP QuickPay, can be accessed through the DEP homepage, does not require customers to register, and allows property owners with multiple accounts to make consolidated payments. New lower convenience fees for credit card payments will apply to both phone and online payments.

In addition, all DEP Borough Offices, which are normally open from 9am to 5pm, Monday through Friday, will remain open an extra hour on Wednesdays and will accept walk-in customers until 6pm.  DEP’s borough offices are located at:

• Bronx: 1932 Arthur Avenue - 6th Floor
• Brooklyn: 250 Livingston Street - 8th Floor
• Manhattan: 1250 Broadway - 8th Floor
• Queens: 96–05 Horace Harding Exp. - 1st Floor
• Staten Island: 60 Bay Street - 6th Floor

As part of DEP’s commitment to providing the highest quality service while ensuring effective and fair revenue collection, a number of initiatives have been implemented since 2011. These programs include the completion of a network of Automated Meter Reading devices which ensure that bills are based on actual consumption and that allow customers to access data about their water use in near real time, a leak detection system that has already saved customers more than $40 million, the Water Debt Assistance program which helps property owners at risk of foreclosure manage their water and sewer debt, and the replacement of thousands of large meters on industry-recommended cycles. 

Providing the highest quality service to its customers is one of the goals outlined in Strategy 2011-2014, a far-reaching strategic plan that lays out 100 distinct initiatives to make DEP the safest, most efficient, cost-effective, and transparent water utility in the nation. 

DEP manages New York City’s water supply, providing more than one billion gallons of water each day to more than 9 million residents, including 8.3 million in New York City, and residents of Ulster, Orange, Putnam, and Westchester counties. This water comes from the Catskill, Delaware, and Croton watersheds that extend more than 125 miles from the City, and the system comprises 19 reservoirs, three controlled lakes, and numerous tunnels and aqueducts. DEP employs nearly 6,000 employees, including almost 1,000 scientists, engineers, surveyors, watershed maintainers and others professionals in the upstate watershed. In addition to its $68 million payroll and $157 million in annual taxes paid in upstate counties, DEP has invested more than $1.5 billion in watershed protection programs—including partnership organizations such as the Catskill Watershed Corporation and the Watershed Agricultural Council—that support sustainable farming practices, environmentally sensitive economic development, and local economic opportunity. In addition, DEP has a robust capital program with over $14 billion in investments planned over the next 10 years that will create up to 3,000 construction-related jobs per year. For more information, visit www.nyc.gov/dep, like us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/nycwater, or follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/nycwater.