Long-hated fee will be removed from BPU bills across Wyandotte County, official says
As of this fall, a long-hated charge on Wyandotte County utility bills will no longer be paid directly by consumers or lead to water and electricity shut-offs, County Administrator David Johnston said Thursday.
Known to residents simply as PILOT — short for payment in lieu of taxes — the fee has gradually risen to a cost of nearly 12% based on a resident’s monthly gas and electric charges. It has long been a source of frustration for many Wyandotte County residents, especially those on fixed or lower incomes who struggle to pay bills.
The PILOT fee makes up for property taxes not collected from the Board of Public Utilities, or BPU, since the public utility is tax exempt. Wyandotte County’s fee is higher than those at many comparable utility companies across the U.S., The Star previously reported. The money is used to help fund city operations.
During an hourlong budget presentation Thursday night, Johnston said the BPU — the separate governing body that oversees utility services in the county — is incorrectly putting those fees directly on customers’ bills. Instead, he said, the BPU is supposed to pay that money to the Unified Government out of its own coffers.
After a review of existing city and county ordinances, Johnston said, it “became evident” that customers should not have to pay the PILOT fee on their bill. He directed the public utility to pull the fee off bills by Oct. 1.
“The consumer will not pay it. They shouldn’t have been paying it all this time,” Johnston said, drawing a round of applause in City Hall on Thursday, adding. “We’re going to follow the law. And so, I know they don’t like that. But, hey, follow the law.”
“No one will be disconnected because they do not pay their PILOT. Because it won’t be on the bill.”
Reached for comment Friday, a BPU spokesman said in an email: “We are currently evaluating the situation.”
City and county government officials presented a leaner budget Thursday that outlined roughly $14.3 million in cuts to services, including public safety, parks and public works. That action comes after commissioners in late June adopted a policy that limits the amount of property tax dollars the government can collect next year.
The proposed budget relies in part on a reduction in the amount the Unified Government would collect in PILOT from the BPU in 2025 — a move Johnston says aligns with the promise of earlier administrations to lessen the blow to ratepayers.
During a follow-up interview Friday, Johnston said the directive should lead to a net benefit for ratepayers in Wyandotte County “from that end.”
It’s still unclear how the BPU will respond or make up the cost.
“How BPU reacts on the rate structure, the public will be watching I’m sure,” Johnston said, adding: “Remember: Adjustments to the rate structure has to go through a public process.”
