HUGHESVILLE, Md. — The Maryland Public Service Commission on April 18, 2025, approved a modified settlement agreement for a rate case involving nine small water utilities serving about 640 customers in Calvert and Charles counties, allowing a $425,000 revenue increase phased in over two years.
The decision, which reinstates the original two-year phase-in after a Public Utility Law Judge’s four-year proposal was appealed, also shifts customers to monthly billing from quarterly and introduces a $13.89 monthly environmental surcharge for three years to comply with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Lead and Copper Rule Revisions.
The utilities, owned by Edward Crooks, include Calvert Beach Water Company, Pine Hill Water Company, Pomonkey Water Company, Pomunk Utilities, Red Hill Water Company, Tip Hill Water Company, Utilco, Western Shores Water Company, and White Plains Water Company.
Starting May 1, 2025, customers will see monthly bills ranging from $49 to $81 in the first year, including the surcharge, with an additional $2.50 to $19 increase in the second year, depending on the utility. The surcharge, aimed at covering EPA compliance costs, will be reassessed after three years to align with actual expenditures.
“In July 2024, a settlement agreement was reached among the owner Edward Crooks, the Maryland Office of People’s Counsel (the state’s ratepayer advocate) and the Commission’s Technical Staff, to increase rates more than $425,000, phased in over two years,” the Commission noted, addressing rates unchanged for 20 to 30 years. Crooks, who forgoes $100,000 of the authorized revenue in year one, cited significant financial losses over the past decade.
To ease the burden, the utilities will offer payment plans for customers struggling with the increases, a measure proposed during an April 10 hearing where Crooks, the Office of People’s Counsel, and Commission staff discussed customer protections and billing changes.
The rate hike addresses the utilities’ financial viability, as they have operated at a loss for over 10 years, per Crooks’ testimony.The Commission’s decision balances this need with customer impact, rejecting the four-year phase-in for legal and operational reasons, ensuring the utilities can maintain safe and reliable systems. The Maryland Public Service Commission regulates 22 small water utilities, serving roughly 11,000 customers, a fraction of Maryland’s water systems, which are mostly municipal. The EPA’s Lead and Copper Rule Revisions, driving the surcharge, aim to reduce lead exposure in drinking water, a priority since updates were finalized in 2024.
Customers were notified of the proposed changes through public comment hearings, including a virtual session on November 26, 2024, with recordings available on the Public Utility Law Judge Division’s YouTube channel. Written comments are accepted until December 6, 2024, via mail to Jamie Bergin, Chief Clerk, Maryland Public Service Commission, William Donald Schaefer Tower, 6 St. Paul Street, 16th Floor, Baltimore, MD 21202, or online at https://www.psc.state.md.us/make-a-public-comment, referencing Case No. 9750. Southern Maryland residents served by these utilities should prepare for the billing shift and explore payment options to manage the increased costs.