An Odessa, Texas courtroom battle over water bills is bringing a frustrating question into sharper focus for local households: If a city installs new meters and residents suddenly see their charges jump fourfold, who is responsible for making things right?
At an Oct. 6 hearing at the Ector County Courthouse, lawyers for hundreds of Odessa residents asked the court to order repayments, alleging that some customers were charged for water they say they never used, according to KOSA.
Here's what to know
The case began with a lawsuit Potts Law Firm filed against the City of Odessa in September.
The firm says hundreds of residents saw their water bills rise sharply after a water meter project and wants reimbursement for affected customers.
Potts presented evidence at the hearing, including Odessa's contract with the vendor behind the water meter project. Attorneys for the residents said the document spelled out promised benefits connected to the new meters.
Citing the vendor's pitch for the project, Emily Marlowe, senior attorney for Potts Law Firm, said one of the company's major promises was a better billing experience for customers.
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She noted that the vendor claimed "the water meters would be more accurate, customers would have [fewer] billing complaints, more availability to view their bills and see more data on it," but "that just simply hasn't happened."
Odessa pushed back on both the contract's relevance and the residents' legal argument.
The city said the agreement was between Odessa and the vendor, not its residents, argued that residents had no clear legal claim for reimbursement, and asked the court to dismiss the case with prejudice.
More background
A major issue in the hearing was how to define harm in a case about rising utility bills.
Odessa argued that residents had not suffered bodily injury or property damage, a position that could determine whether customers can recover money in a billing-related lawsuit.
Potts Law Firm maintains that approach ignores the financial strain of a sudden spike in costs.
"The city was trying to argue that nobody was physically harmed, nobody's property was harmed," said Russell Sharuner, a Midland associate with Potts Law Firm.
"Harm has many definitions, and when people are going paycheck to paycheck and they get a quadruple water bill, that is harm."
Odessa also argued in court that the older water meters were faulty and may have recorded usage incorrectly before the replacements were installed. Under that view, at least some of the higher bills would reflect corrected readings rather than improper charges.
The judge did not issue a ruling after the hearing, leaving residents waiting to learn whether their claims will move forward or be dismissed in Ector County court.
Where can I learn more?
Similar disputes have surfaced elsewhere when customers challenge water or utility charges. They range from a $4,500 meter demand in Texas to steep rate hikes and other fights over who should pay.
• In Potosi, Texas, residents faced a $4,500 meter demand and threats to shut off water.
• In Virginia, customers called a nearly 30% increase "insane" as their bills climbed.
• PacifiCorp asked regulators to let customers cover $1.7 billion in wildfire damages.
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