Getting Hosed: Officials finally address on bad water billing at City Council hearing
CHICAGO (CBS) -- We are pleased to report that the city took action Tuesday on an issue the CBS 2 Investigators have brought to the forefront – bogus water bills.
The Chicago City Council Finance Committee held a hearing Tuesday with the heads of the Water Management and Finance departments, finally answering questions - at least some. The hearing went on for nearly four hours.
It is a topic near and dear to CBS 2 Streaming Anchor Brad Edwards – whose reporting on this topic dates back to 2019. Edwards' first Getting Hosed report involved a couple overcharged by tens of thousands of dollars.
What followed were veterans, city employees, widows, and seniors – all with different tales. All those tales involved bills that were wrong – way wrong – and indifferent city bureaucrats unwilling to help.
We've done stories on bad customer service, on how those without meters pay much more, and on how the poorest Chicagoans are more oppressed by bad water billing – and especially by fines and fees that often seem unnecessary and arbitrary.
Finally, Ald. Gilbert Villegas (36th) heard our reports – and demanded those in charge come to City Hall to explain.
Villegas and his colleagues thanked us for shining a light on all the people getting hosed.
Those people include Vietnam veteran Rodney Andrews. Mr. Andrews became a symbol of bureaucratic wrong – unable to live in his home because of a bungled water bill – and the water wasn't even on.
"I refused to pay it, because I didn't think it waws was right," Andrews said at the hearing.
That was until we got involved – and brough attention to his plight.
"I got a call only after I was featured by Brad Edwards in the Getting Hosed series," Lisa Beard said at the hearing Tuesday.
Beard is a city employee – and a victim of city bureaucracy as well.
She too testified about her frustration.
"Someone would see that amount of water – it is the equivalent of eight swimming pools – and me and the 11-year-old used it," Beard said. "No one calls you back. There's no recourse."
We have featured the Juarez family as well. They too described indifferent responses from the city.
"I called Channel 2 News, and a day or two after the segment aired, I got an annoyed call from the Water Management leadership," said Jazmin Juarez.
Andrews, Beard, and Juarez are some of the past victims we've featured. There is also Victor Caterino – whom Edwards just met Tuesday.
Edwards: "Your water bill went from a couple hundred bucks to now, what is it?"
Caterino: "$8,000."
Edwards: "Your water usage went from a couple hundred gallons a day to what?"
Caterino: "45,000 gallons a day."
And Caterino did not open a water park. It's baloney. He was getting hosed.
The city and their department heads sat for the hearing.
"We are committed to modernizing the AMR meter reading system," said city Water Commissioner Andrea Cheng.
"A surprise jump in water costs should not cause any Chicagoan to think about leaving their home or moving their business," said Chicago city Comptroller Chasse Rehwinkel.
Rehwinkel also said the city does not need to collect fines and fees for revenue-generating purposes.
"Fines and fees are necessary to correct behavior," said Rehwinkel. "They're not necessary to fund the City of Chicago."
The officials faced a barrage of questions from aldermen Tuesday – demanding a fix to an obviously broken system.
"You know, for some type of refund, or you know, correction – what are we doing now?" said Ald. David Moore (17th).
Department leaders needed a reminder they work for the city and its residents.
"We've got to figure out how to be responsible, making sure that we're not gouging the citizens of Chicago," Villegas said.
"You all need to fix this," said Ald. Jeanette Taylor (20th). "Customer service, y'all suck. Y'all don't answer the phone."
The aldermen want it fixed for people like Helene Kohn.
Edwards: "Did you leave there with any confidence that this might even remotely getting fixed?"
Kohn: "I don't think there's a will to fix it."
And she knows the nightmare. Early in 2019, Helene and Kerry Kohn – owners of a laundry and dry-cleaning business – were our first Getting Hosed victims. We saved them $33,093.65.
Helene Kohn testified Tuesday.
"I thought the panel was unprepared to answer the questions from the public and from the aldermen," Kohn said. "I didn't think they had the data. Showed like in four years, they haven't moved the needle."
Water commissioner: 'No comment'
For years, as we've been stonewalled and lied to by the city, the Department of Water Management has refused our interview requests.
One would think this hearing would be an opportunity. But when it comes to the Department of Water Management, it wasn't.
Commissioner of Water Management Andrea Cheng - in charge since the administration Mayor Lori Lightfoot - refused to talk to Edwards Tuesday even before he asked a question. Edwards thought the years of waiting were enough.
Edwards: "Commissioner, hi - it's Brad Edwards again. I just introduced myself, and before I even asked a question you said…"
Cheng: "No Comment."
Edwards: "You are taxpayer paid-for commissioner of the Department of Water Management. You spoke for three hours today - a lot of questions to be asked. Why won't you answer one?"
Cheng: "No comment. We can set up another time to have an interview."
Edwards: "Can you guarantee that for me right now, we will sit down and talk?"
Cheng: "Absolutely not."
Edwards: "Absolutely not?"
Cheng: "Absolutely not, but if you submit your questions, we can talk and see what answers, we can discuss."
Edwards: "We'd like a sit-down interview."
Cheng: "You're ambushing me as I leave City Council."
Edwards: "I asked you in there - we've been asking you for years to discuss this - and you guys have refused to talk to us."
Cheng: "We've had lost of time that we've interacted – and I'm waiting for an elevator. Can you – let's set up a time to do this professionally."
Edwards: "Professionally, you would talk with us - so can you guarantee you'll talk with us?"
Cheng: "Submit your questions, and we'll have a discussion."
Journalistically, we don't supply our questions ahead of time. And it's hard to say something was an "ambush" at a public hearing.
After all, all Edwards did was ask Cheng if she would talk to him.
Edwards did have one question - like how Chicago is the worst in the country with 309,000 lead service lines. The commissioner had said the city would start replacing the lines to the tune of 4,500 a year - then more.
In the best-case scenario, the replacement project won't be finished until about half a century from now.
Really?
That's just one question.