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Member Lenz referenced the senior discount for water utilities, and questioned <br />whether or not that program had been discontinued (page 5 of Miller <br />memorandum). <br />Mr. Miller apologized for not changing that term, and thanked Member Lenz for <br />catching that for his updating before moving on to the City Council. Mr. Miller <br />clarified that the discount was now "financially based" versus the old criteria for an <br />age -based discount, with the need for certain income thresholds to be met before <br />qualifying for a discount. <br />At the request of Member Lenz, Mr. Miller advised that each year the City's <br />outreach included the city newsletter article, and continuous website information. <br />At the request of Member Seigler, Mr. Miller reported that as with any discount <br />program, it was funded by those not receiving any discount; and was a city program, <br />not affiliated with the county or state. <br />At the request of Member Wozniak, Mr. Miller reported that with the change in <br />eligibility and financial criteria requirements made in January of 2015, there were <br />now only about 20-25 households signed up. Mr. Miller opined that more were <br />eligible, but after consulting with staff, they declined to participate, whether <br />because they didn't want to go through applying or didn't want to share their <br />financial situation. <br />Member Seigler opined they may feel an approximate discount of $87/year was not <br />worth their time. <br />At the request of Member Lenz, Mr. Miller advised that he had tracked the number <br />of seniors contacting staff when the senior discount program was taken away, <br />estimating 100 contacts. Mr. Miller reported about half that number asked why it <br />had been removed, and after explaining the new criteria and rationale, they <br />understood. However, Mr. Miller reported that the other half were of a different <br />mindset, and with most stating they had been receiving it for a number of years, <br />their rationale was based on a sense of entitlement and nothing much beyond that. <br />With no more questions of the PWETC, Chair Stenlund thanked Mr. Miller for his <br />informative presentation and responses. <br />6. Water Service Presentation and Discussion <br />Noting that the PWETC at this meeting was still missing two of its members, Mr. <br />Culver questioned how much detail and discussion those members present wanted <br />to do to avoid repeating it at a future meeting. <br />Mr. Culver further reported that he had briefly mentioned the warranty program <br />with the PWETC expressing some interest in having a representative from the firm <br />come to a future meeting to provide more details and respond to questions of the <br />Page 12 of 18 <br />