$9,000 water bill no mistake

SUSSEX — Sussex Borough resident Joseph Ballo was understandably upset when he received a $9,000 water and sewer bill from the town recently. Although the bill represents nine months of water and sewer use according to borough officials, Ballo insists there’s no way he and his teenage son could possibly have used more than 350,000 gallons of water between the two of them in that span. “I’m not payin’ no $9,000 water bill,” Ballo told the Sussex Borough Council at its July 21 meeting. “It’s just me and my son.” But if Ballo doesn’t come up with at least half the money by Aug. 1, the town will shut off the water to his home, said Sussex Borough Clerk Catherine Gleason. As astronomical as the utility bill seems, Gleason and other borough officials insist it’s correct. The borough recently had an independent company examine Ballo’s water meter and determined that the meter is functioning properly; and that 356,000 gallons of water had been processed between July 2008 and March 2009 from Ballo’s residence. The tests revealed that 89 percent of Ballo’s water usage went through the meter for the nine-month period, meaning that 11 percent of the water used couldn’t be accounted for, said Gleason. Ballo said his water bill has been paid for by the Sussex County Department of Social Services for the past seven months after he suffered what he termed a “mental breakdown” and injured his back, which he says has prevented him from working. Ballo said his most recent water/sewer bill for the April-June quarter was just $312. But Sussex Borough Mayor Christian Parrott noted that Ballo’s water/sewer bill for the April-June 2008 quarter was $1,500, which indicates that Ballo and his son have “used large amounts of water in the past,” said Parrott. Ballo asked the council to have the borough’s Department of Public Works investigate whether a water leak outside his home might be the culprit. But Sussex Borough Attorney John Ursin informed Ballo that any water that invokes the use of the water meter is occurring inside the house. Any possible water leaks outside the residence wouldn’t affect the water bill, he said. Ursin suggested to Ballo that he write a letter to the DPW requesting that it review his water system. Ballo said he intends to do that. In the meantime, he said he has retained an attorney, though Ballo said he wasn’t sure yet what legal steps he might take.