Late on your water bill? Kansas City won’t penalize you during coronavirus pandemic
KC Water will not charge penalties on late water bills during the novel coronavirus pandemic, the City Council decided Thursday.
Council members voted unanimously to waive late fees on residential water, storm water and sewer bills between April 1 and May 31 as the city — and country — are gripped by an economic downturn caused by the COVID-19 virus.
Shutdowns and stay at home orders issued in Kansas City and surrounding counties have brought businesses to a halt and spurred a sudden spike in joblessness. To limit the pain, Kansas City already stopped shutting off residential water service to customers who are delinquent in payments. Waiving late fees takes that a step further.
Spire Inc., which supplies natural gas services on the Missouri side of the metro, and Evergy, the electricity provider for much of the metro, already suspended both late fees and cutoffs.
The legislation was proposed by Councilwoman Heather Hall, 1st District.
To find out more about Kansas City’s response to the coronavirus, you can text “COVIDKC” to 888-777 or visit the city’s website at kcmo.gov/coronavirus. The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has information at cdc.gov/coronavirus, and the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services has a hotline at 877-435-8411.
This story was originally published April 2, 2020 at 6:29 PM.
