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Home My WebLink About2001 06 25 Informational A Utility Billing and Cash Receipting Computer Conversion COMMISSION AGENDA ITEM A CONSENT INFORMATIONAL PUBLIC HEARING REGULAR x June 25, 2001 IDEPT....--.oL- ;::}-- MGR Meeting A lIthori z::lti on REQUEST: The Utility Finance Department requests that the City Commission review information relative to the recent Utility Billing and Cash Receipting Computer Conversion. PURPOSE: The purpose of this item is to inform the City Commission of all pertinent details regarding the Utility Billing and Cash Receipting Computer Conversion. CONSIDERATIONS: . Utility Billing and Cash Receipting underwent a computer conversion the week of May 28th, 2001. . We have four main billing cycles that encompass our entire City. Each Cycle is billed on a different week and represents a different area of the City. The first bills with the new computer system have been produced and mailed for Cycle 1 - these bills have been received by the residents in Cycle 1. The first bills for Cycle 2 will be produced and mailed the week of June 18th. The first bills for Cycle 3 and Cycle 4 will be produced and mailed the weeks of June 25th and July 2nd, respectively. . The "look" of our utility bill has changed (see attached example). We purposely changed the "look" of our bill to one that we feel is preferable. In addition, the customers account number has changed. The customer account number change was the result of a new computer system and the hard coded format for account numbers. We had no choice but to change the account numbers. . The Commission approved the addition of a full-time employee to handle Utility Billing telephone calls at the June 11111,2001 Commission meeting. We have been for the last couple of weeks and are temporarily utilizing one of our existing employees as full-time telephone support until we hire a permanent employee in that position. . We have received numerous calls from the residents in Cycle 1 regarding their new utility bill. Most of the calls have to do with the new look and the change in the account numbers. The increase in telephone calls related to this new bill from our Cycle 1 residents began on Monday, June 18th. Even with a full-time employee doing nothing but answering the phones, the Utility Billing message box, which holds 73 messages, has filled up and in some instances additional callers could not leave a message. . We have researched expanding our Utility Billing message box capacity with the Telephone Company. It appears that we are at full capacity for this particular type of message box. We are looking into the costs associated with different and larger message box systems. The increase in calls is temporary and due to the computer conversion and will likely drop off after a few weeks; however, we are trying to accommodate this temporary problem immediately so that our residents feel that they are being properly served. . The Cycle 2 bills will include a message at the bottom of the bill alerting customers to the fact that the "look" of their bill has changed due to a computer conversion and their account number has changed also. Hopefully, this message will help curtail the need for personal discussion regarding the changes in their bill and in turn reduce the telephone call volume. . We currently use a door hanger as a late notice and another door hanger at the time the meter is turned off as a shut off notice. Weare currently working on a design for a late notice post card and anticipate that this will go out in the next couple of weeks. This card would be used instead of the late notice door hangers. The use of a post card would eliminate the need for the Meter Readers to go door to door hanging delinquent notices. In addition, our residents routinely complain about the embarrassment they suffer when their neighbors can see, via the door hanger, that they haven't paid their bill on time. Note that door hangers will still be used as shut off notices at the time the meter is turned off. FUNDING: The current budget for postage adequately covers the cost of postage for the postcards due to the fact that the new computer software allows us to receive a reduced rate on our postage for our new monthly bills. RECOMMENDATION: N/ A - Item is informational only. ATTACHMENTS: Example - New Utility Bill COMMISSION ACTION: .J, Detach this portion and return with your reminance .J, City of Winter Springs UTILITY BILL Utility Billing 1126 EState Road 434 Remit Copy Winter Springs, FL 32708 407-327-5996 '. Bill NUl'nberi' 102678 10200 15489 aNtMK-1lUtM ~ WINTER SPRINGS, FL 32708 10200 15489 :,' BiII:'()ate".r -i~;FiOlieDate;~: 06/12/2001 07/03/2001 Previous Balance ,00 ,Curi'erit;..yna'rges :- 69.36 . . $69.36 1"11",1,11",111",1"1,11",11",11",11,,,11,,,11,"11,,,1 Changes made below are for mailing address only. Please change the following: Mailing Address: City, State. Zip: Home Telephone: Business Telephone: Email Address: 00006042001600102678000000069369 City of Winter Springs Utility Billing 1126 E. State Road 434 Winter Springs, FL 32708 407-327-5996 UTILITY BILL " ,Bill tN!.lIn6ef;1j~l~'1> ':Jl. 102678 :.. DescriQtiori : "t Customer Copy Keep this portion for your records ... :> w <t u; U lD :> ., 'c " E (; IL 10200 15489 06/12/2001 07/03/2001 irF'iese71ttFleaif'Date31 '~'!F'ravlQ~tR'EfadOale1.1 il"ies8'rli.iMetern'R6ailin\:l2 iPrS"vtOUs'iMetenReadingI t,'G:;Flea1lln(,-!i_ ..US1l.Q6 ',:"'ChafgL.:....... WATER 3/4" SEWER 3/4" RECLAIMFL GARBAGE STMWTR FUL 06/05/2001 04/25/2001 208650 197090 06/01/2001 06/01/2001 06/01/2001 o o o o o o A A A A A 11560 11560 o o o 14.63 32.55 5.00 13.68 2.04 ;,; .., (; f!? B m o ,.. ~ '" <t g lD ii u . JastlPa.tAl'nt~ ';"\Last'lPay}!Datil':!' (rAnfountF!ast'D~e. 60.87 06/05/2001 .00 ~i<\:Y(',Corre;,t. Charges 69.36 . - $69.36 . A = Actual, E = Estimate THIRD ANNUAL BASKETBALL PROGRAM BEGINS JUNE 4. FREE, AGES 6 TO 18. CALL 407-327-4761 FOR INFORMATION COMMERCIAL VEHICLE LIMITED TERM PARKING PERMITS EXPIRE JULY 2, 2001. CALL 407-327-5979 FOR INFORMATION Customer Service Office location and Hours: If you have any questions about your bill, please call City of Winter Springs Utility Billing Office at (407) 327-5996. OHice hours are Monday to Friday. 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. The office is located at 1126 Easl State Road 434, Winter Springs, Florida. For your convenience, a drive up night depository box is provided in the driveway on the west end of City Hall. PLEASE DO NOT PLACE CASH IN THE NIGHT DEPOSITORY. For after hours emergencies related to utilities. call (407) 327.2669. Garbage and Recycling: Garbage and Recycling services are handled by Florida Recycling. Questions regarding these services should be directed to their customer service department at (407) B31-1539. Delinquent Payments: If current charges are not paid by the due date, the charges are subject to a 5% late fee. Previous balance indicates a PAST DUE amount. The due date on the front does not apply to any previous balance. An account with a previous balance is subject to disconnection at any time. In order to reinstate service on an account turned off for nonpayment. the customer must pay the total amount due plus an additional turn-on charge of &20.00. Our policy prohibits field personnel from collecting any checks or cash from our customers. Payments must be made in our customer service office. If you have any questions regarding delinquent accounts, please contact our collection office at 14071 327-5953. How to Read Your Water Meter: Your water meter is a highly accurate devico. Its useful life extends twenty years and rarely, if ever, requires maintenance or adjustment. In order to keep track of the effect of different household activities on your wator consumption, you can easily read your meter. Simply write down all the numbers shown on the face of the meter and deduct a previous reading from this figure to get your water consumption in thousands of gallons. Mall Delivery Problems: The City of Winter Springs is not responsible for undelivered or late mail. In the event you fail to receive a bill, please call our customer service office at the number listed above. .............. . - - - ~-........~.... ~ .; ,. w A... fIl.J E... 'tJ &. '-0 PE. A .,. ., AC.... E. 0