No fee for credit card payments at Birch Bay district

Birch Bay Water and Sewer District commissioners have opted for the district to pick up the cost of customers paying their bills by credit card.
In his proposal to the board at their February 28 meeting, treasurer Glenn Golay suggested the district start accepting credit cards, but charge $4 for each credit card transaction to make up equipment and processing costs. “The question is who bears the cost of the service, all the ratepayers or just the ones who use it,” he said.

Adding up all the fees and costs based on 230 transactions per month, adding credit cards to the district’s payment options would cost $519 per month. A $4 handling fee would generate $920 per month.

“I think we ought to think seriously about absorbing these charges,” said Commissioner Don Montfort. “When someone pays with a check there are handling costs with that too and we don’t charge for it.” Commissioner Pat Alesse said the district might gain efficiency by making payment easier. “We might find we have fewer lockoffs when people go away,” he said. Golay said an autopay option could be a possibility in the future..
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