BILLINGS— Billings residents are continuing to fight against water bills they say spiked last year, but the City of Billings maintains they will impose late fees at the end of December and turn off water in January if residents do not establish a payment plan with Public Works.
The city received many complaints in August of 2024 when water bills surged after the city installed a new billing software.
The city completed a water audit in February, which found the city was not at fault for unusually high water bills, but many residents still refused to pay.
Related: Billings property owners seeking legal action regarding high water bills
One Billings resident, 22-year-old Kailey Ferguson, received a bill of approximately $2,500 for the month of August in 2024, accounting for 34 days.
She said she immediately called Public Works to see if she had a leak.
“They were like, ‘This is insane amount of water.’ They told us like, even if you left all of your sinks, your bathtub, your washer dryer, your toilets, your hose outside, if all of that was running, you still wouldn't use this much water in a month,” said Ferguson.
She said the maintenance crew did not discover a leak, but the city insisted she pay the amount regardless.
“They basically told us there's nothing more we can do. The meters are correct is what they told us. So, whatever is flowing through those meters is what you need to pay,” said Ferguson.
The city continued to bill Ferguson for amounts much higher than what she had paid in years before, raising her total water bill to $7, 721.
Ferguson and her family had moved out of their house in February due to the high cost, but the city charged her for that address through June.
“There were so many emotions going on that there wasn't time to think about things or work through things. Because I mean, we have two boys. Like, life doesn't stop because of this,” she said.
Ferguson said she sought help from property owner Ed Johnston, who spoke with city council members, and resulted in the city crediting her back more than $3,500.
This brought her total bill down to $4,134, but Ferguson said the amount is still unaffordable even with her and her husband’s combined income.
“I can't afford four grand for two months-worth of water. And I mean, that's double the amount we were paying for rent,” she said.
Ferguson said Public Works told her if she does not set up a payment plan for the amount by the end of December, her debt will go to collections.
“They send it to collections which hurts your credit,” she said.
“If you don't pay the collections, they can start deducting it from your paychecks, so that's fun,” she added.
Ferguson has been seeking help from a Facebook group, Billings Water Dispute - Citizens REACT.
Ed Johnston and Gary Zacc, who both own properties in Billings run the account. The account has helped them document over 50 bill invoices from residents who claim they were billed unfairly.
“When you look at the history of several years of usage, what happened during a very brief period of time makes no sense,” said Johnston.
Johnston and Zacc have been meeting with City Administrator Chris Kukulski, Deputy Director of Public Works Jennifer Duray and multiple city council members to negotiate lowering the bills.
“So far, no action has been taking place. They still, even though we've talked to a lot of people, they're still telling us that they believe that everything that was billed is 100% accurate and they want their money,” said Zacc.
Johnston said Wednesday he has considered legal action, but it is an option he and Zacc want to avoid.
“The citizens will pay for those legal bills. The citizens will have to pay those legal fees. So, whether we win or we lose, we still lose,” said Johnston.
Johnston and Zacc are continuing to encourage people to use their Facebook page to document bill invoices from the community.
“We'll put it with our information and pass that along. But it also establishes a lot of information for our foundation. It affirms that there's been a major problem,” said Zacc.
