DuPage Water Commission OKs budget filled with uncertainty

Spending plans for the DuPage Water Commission's upcoming fiscal year includes $89 million on operations, $10.6 million on bond debt and $10.5 million on construction.

However, about half of the construction debt is left over from this year.

The $110 million worth of expenses hinges on the financially strapped agency receiving a $40 million loan and a water rate of $2.08 per 1,000 gallons. If the commission is unable to secure the loan, the body will have to increase the rate significantly to cover shortfalls created by the misappropriation of the commission's $69 million reserve funds. Only Commissioner Liz Chaplin voted against the budget proposal Thursday.

Some commissioners attempted to increase next year's water rate an additional 24 cents, but the initiative failed.

"We need to raise the rates in case we don't get the loan," commissioner Tom Bennington said. "We seem to be spending money we don't have."

The water commission is responsible for supplying more than two dozen municipalities and agencies with Lake Michigan water.

The accidental reserve fund spending came to light last year after the commission's financial administrator went on personal leave and his replacement noticed some irregularities.

A forensic audit of the commission's finances uncovered nothing illegal, just poor management and oversight of the group's finances. The financial administrator was fired, the general manager and treasurer both resigned and Thursday a state Senate bill passed through that chamber allowing the county to take control of the commission.

The commission is made up of 13 members, six of whom are chosen by municipal customers and six others and the chairman are appointed by the county board chairman. The board welcomed its newest member Thursday, Naperville City Councilman Richard Furstenau. He replaced Allan Poole, who is retiring as Naperville's utility department czar after more than three decades with the city.

Furstenau immediately made waves by recommending the commission increase the coming year's water rate an additional 78 cents and cut the quarter-cent sales tax that usually generates about $30 million annually. He argued that the commission should be using the sales tax revenue for capital improvement projects, but the coming year's budget called for $23 million of it to be spent on operations.

"The political reality is we're going to have to get rid of the sales tax before someone tells us to," Furstenau said, referring to the Senate bill.