Detroit — A coalition of welfare rights groups is appealing to the United Nations to assist Detroit residents in battling the Detroit Water and Sewerage Department over water shutoffs for delinquent bills.
In an eight-page report submitted this month to the UN special rapporteur, groups including the Sierra Club, the Detroit People’s Water Board, Michigan Welfare Rights Organization and Blue Planet Project say they are “outraged” about the alleged violation of human rights to water and are calling on authorities to restore service and stop further cut-offs.
The groups are calling the situation a “massive human rights atrocity” and pleading with the federal and state government to work with the bankrupt city to establish a fair and sustainable rate structure.
“The case of water cut-offs in the City of Detroit speaks to the deep racial divides and intractable economic and social inequality in access to services within the United States,” the report says, adding the shutoffs are a “last-ditch attempt” to make up for lost revenue.
“The burden of paying for city services has fallen onto the residents who have stayed within the economically depressed city, most of whom are African-American.”
Water department officials deny the allegations.
“The accusation that they’re making that we are targeting poor customers in massive shutoffs is not true,” said Curtrise Garner, a department spokeswoman. “We are seeking payments for our delinquent water and sewerage accounts. It’s consistent but it’s not massive.”
In March, the utility announced it was starting a campaign to target tens of thousands of Detroiters with balances more than $150 overdue or more than two months behind on their payments. Of the nearly 324,000 Detroit water and sewerage accounts, half are overdue.
Darryl Latimer, the department’s deputy director, said in March the department was preparing for up to 3,000 shutoffs a week, employing up to 20 additional contractor crews.
The company put out 46,000 shut-off notices this spring. But shut-offs, so far, have totaled about 4,500, Garner said Tuesday. The goal is to get people to begin paying their overdue accounts, she added.
Last week, the City Council approved an 8.7 percent hike in water and sewer rates for Detroit customers.
The 6-2 approval is expected to aid the ailing water system in covering capital costs. The rate is higher than the average of 4 percent for the systems suburban customers and result, in part, from the increasing number of uncollected bills, DWSD has said.
A typical Detroit resident pays $64 per month for water and sewer services. Under the increase that goes into effect July 1, they would pay $70.67, according to documents provided to the council from the water department.
“We will work with them to get on a payment plan,” Garner said. “They don’t even have to be on shut-off status. We are willing to work with people who are having trouble paying the bill.”
In the June 18 report, various groups also provide firsthand accounts from residents who were having water services cut off by the department.
“The Detroit People’s Water Board is hearing directly from people impacted by the water cut-offs who say they were given no warning and had no time to fill buckets, sinks and tubs before losing access to water,” the report says. “In some cases, the cut-offs occurred before the deadline given in notices sent by the city. Sick people have been left without running water and working toilets. People recovering from surgery cannot wash and change bandages. Children cannot bathe and parents cannot cook.”
