WEST PARIS — Trustees for the West Paris Water District voted May 15 to outsource its administrative and customer service functions.

The board met again on May 23, holding a workshop to review its financial statements and budget, project revenues for the next fiscal year and discuss its proposed rate case.

David Walton, chairman of WPWD’s board, expects its proposed rates to be available for public review by June 9.

Legal notices will be mailed to customers and posted publicly before July 10.

A public hearing to present the proposed rates is expected to take place by July 24.

Effective May 25, WPWD has entered into a two-year contract with Maine Rural Water Association to handle its administrative operations, accounting and customer service functions.

The utility is also being released from its lease for office space at the former Ledgeview Living Center on Bethel Road. The drop box for customer payments has been moved over to West Paris’ Town Office at 25 Kingsbury Street by May 26.

Customer billing and disconnection notices will now be sent from MRWA’s Richmond office. The new address to send payments to is P.O. Box 53, Richmond, ME 04357.

The changeover includes a new customer service phone number: 207-309-9667; hours of operation are Monday-Thursday 8 a.m.-1 p.m.

The after-hours/emergency service number continues to be 207-890-4713.

Trustees will continue to hold business meetings at Town Office, as has been the case since the beginning of this year. Meeting notices and agendas are also posted at Town Office.

Interim trustee Melissa LaCombe, who was appointed to the board by West Paris’ Select Board in March after its former chairman Brandon Ballweber resigned, announced May 15 that she will step down as of May 30, citing conflicts with her municipal duties as deputy clerk, registrar of voters and motor vehicle agent.

Outsourcing its administration will eliminate the gap created at WPWD when its former Board Secretary and Office Clerk Clairluz Perez Lisboa resigned in March.

Perez Lisboa was suspended from her duties by the board on March 13, reinstated the following week and then resigned.

The Maine Public Utilities Commission waived its requirement for WPWD to be in compliance with its accounting audits to allow it to expedite filing a rate case to increase prices.

The last reported audit was done back in 2021. The water district contracted HRH Smith & Co. of Buxton earlier this spring to conduct back audits, but as WPWD is in an insolvent financial condition, the PUC found it necessary to proceed with the rate case before HRH Smith completes its work.

West Paris was put on a boil water notice for four months starting last April after the water district’s reservoir was damaged and contaminated by bacteria. Since that time WPWD has operated under a state-mandated consent order. It hired Gray Water District’s Superintendent Bill Gardner, who has been managing its system, maintenance and testing while it is without a permanent operator.

A priority for MRWA is to assess WPWD’s accounts receivable records, identify customers with the largest balances and start issuing shut-off notices for those who do bring their balances current or agree to payment plans.

Some accounts have been in arrears for years, with at least one customer owing more than $20,000.

MRWA representatives will also work with the utility’s operator to prioritize and schedule account locations to have new meters installed.