Archives of the Mayor's Press Office
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Date: October 21, 1996
Release #539-96
Contact: Colleen Roche/ Jack Deacy (212) 788-2958 or Cathy Delli Carpini (DEP) (718) 595-6600
MAYOR GIULIANI AND DEP COMMISSIONER MIELE ANNOUNCE EXPANSION OF WATER BILLING OUTREACH PROGRAM
Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani and Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) Commissioner Joel A. Miele today announced that the Mayor's Water Billing Outreach Program will begin in Queens on Wednesday, October 23rd and will expand to reach all five boroughs. Joining the Mayor for this announcement was Queens Borough President Claire Shulman.
The program unveiled last week, is a series of consumer meetings which will provide local-area residents with the opportunity to resolve account-specific water billing problems and to receive general information about billing. The first set of meetings will take place in Queens on Wednesday, October 23; with subsequent meetings in Queens on Wednesday, October 30; Thursday, November 7; and Thursday, November 14, 1996 from 6pm to 10pm, at various locations listed below.
The Mayor said that the program will expand into the other boroughs as follows:
Brooklyn - in November, 1996;
The Bronx - in December, 1996;
Staten Island - in January 1997; and
Manhattan - in February, 1997.
"The Water Billing Outreach Program is one important component of our administration's continuing efforts to improve DEP's water and sewer billing operation," Mayor Giuliani said. "Commissioner Miele and I are committed to ensuring that home owners are properly and accurately billed. I urge all residents to take advantage of this outreach program. "
The Mayor also reminded New Yorkers that this program supplements the already existing Water Billing helpline, "If you are currently experiencing water or sewer billing problems, please call 718-595-7000 for immediate assistance."
As part of the Mayor's Water Billing Outreach Program, over the next four months, DEP Customer Service staff equipped with water billing computers, will be on hand at locations throughout the City to resolve water bill questions. In order to be best served, residents should bring their most recent water and sewer bills. Additional consumer services, such as conservation assistance, will also be available.
Borough President Claire Shulman said, "This expanded outreach effort will go a long way to reduce anxiety and raise hopes for reasonable resolutions of water billing problems. Many of our borough's senior citizens have been frightened by bills that seem to threaten the very future of their homes. I want to thank Mayor Giuliani and Commissioner Miele for their efforts to address these problems and I hope that everyone takes advantage of this program."
"DEP's Water Billing Outreach Meetings will resolve individual problems head-on -- and on the spot -- by bringing our customer service resources to City neighborhoods, borough by borough," said Commissioner Miele. "We know there have been problems with water and sewer bills in the past. These meetings will allow us not only to rectify these problems but also to demonstrate DEP's improved efficiency and service. At DEP, we have committed our full resources to this important program."
The Mayor said that significant improvements have already been made to the water and sewer billing system. Among the most dramatic improvements are:
- -Additional staff has been added to DEP's Correspondence Unit and Call Center to quicken responses -- whether the inquiry is a call or letter.
- -The staff at DEP's Call Center and at the Borough Offices have received additional customer service training to better serve customers;
- -Late charges will not be added to an account which is under review;
- -If customers question the "prior balance" on the bill, they will be asked to pay only current charges until the complaint is resolved;
- If the current bill appears very high, customers will be asked to pay an amount equal to a normal previous bill;
- -Customers will no longer receive monthly delinquency notices while DEP investigates a disputed bill;
- -Calculations of "estimated" charges have been adjusted downward to more accurately reflect water-use in similar properties; and
DEP's meter repair contractors will repair more meters faster -- to improve accuracy and reduce the number of estimated bills sent to DEP customers.
The Mayor commended DEP, in particular Deputy Commissioner Lawrence Schatt, for devoting full-time attention to this problems and for making vast improvements in a relatively short period of time. The Mayor also thanked Commissioner Ralph Balzano of DOITT for providing the technical support which will make these meetings possible.
New Yorkers who experience billing problems are urged to take advantage of this citywide Outreach Program. Customers are also reminded that they can also call 718-595-7000 with billing inquiries.
A list of Queens locations follows:
MAYOR'S WATER BILLING OUTREACH PROGRAM
Queens Week 1 - Wednesday, October 23, 1996 6pm-10pm
| Variety Boys Club | Financial Federal Savings Bank |
| 21-12 30th Road | 42-25 Queens Boulevard, |
| Astoria | corner of 43rd Street |
|
Sunnyside |
| Durow's | Richmond Hill Block Association |
| 81-01 Myrtle Avenue | 110-08 Jamaica Avenue |
| Glendale | Richmond Hill |
| Ozone Howard Little League |
| 149th Avenue and Centreville Street |
Queens Week 2 - Wednesday, October 30, 1996 6pm-10pm
| Flushing High School | Hillcrest High School |
| 35-01 Union Street | 160-05 Highland Avenue |
| East Flushing | Hillcrest |
| Bayside High School | Louis Pasteur H.S. |
| 32nd Avenue and | 51-60 Marathon Parkway |
| 208th Street | Douglaston |
| Bayside |
| Martin Van Buren High School | J.H.S. 231 |
| 232 Street | Springfield Boulevard |
| Floral Park | Cambria Heights |
QUEENS WEEK 3 - Thursday, November 7, 1996 6pm -10pm
| I.S. 125 | I.S. 145 |
| 46-02 47th Avenue | 33-34 80th Street |
| Woodside | Jackson Heights |
| P.S. 49 | P.S. 139 |
| 79-15 Penelope Avenue | 93-06-63rd Drive |
| Middle Village | Rego Park |
| Forest Hills High School | JHS 185 |
| 67-01 110th Street | 147-26 25th Drive |
| Forest Hills | College Point |
Specific locations for Week 4 of the Queens Outreach Program and for the other four boroughs will be released at a later date.
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