JTMUA will save money on meter deal with Brick
BY DAVE BENJAMIN
Staff Writer

JACKSON - The Jackson Township Municipal Utilities Authority (JTMUA) may soon be joining hands with the Brick Township Municipal Utilities Authority (BTMUA) in an interlocal government services agreement.

The agreement, which was given the green light by the Township Council in a 4-0 vote on July 10, will provide water meter testing services for the JTMUA.

Council President Ann Updegrave said the deal will save money for Jackson. Under the terms of the agreement, the cost for a water meter test will drop from $25 to $15 per test.

"Any time an interlocal agreement can be done, it's always in the best interest of everybody," Updegrave said.

JTMUA Executive Director David Harpell said Brick officials have already approved the agreement. The deal was awaiting approval from the Jackson council. He said the JTMUA Board of Commissioners will vote on the agreement later this month.

Harpell said the JTMUA reads a lot of meters and wants the meters to read accurately. The meters tend to have a 10-year life and over the course of a year the authority usually wants to replace about 10 percent of the meters, he said.

"Therefore they have to be tested to make sure they read accurately," he explained, adding that at the present time a private vendor charges about $25 for each test. Harpell said the BTMUA can do the test for $15 per meter. "It's a substantial cost savings. The other benefit is that now we have to ship the meters out and [if the JTMUA joins with Brick] we won't have to [pay for] shipping them."

Harpell said the deal will result in a savings for ratepayers.

JTMUA Chairman William J. All-mann said the authority provides water service to about 11,000 business and residential customers in the township.

"There are slightly fewer water meters than that because apartments and mobile home parks have a master meter," he said.

Commenting on the interlocal agreement with the BTMUA, Allmann said the cost savings are what the JTMUA commissioners are looking for.

"Anyone who is having a problem with their water meter will be able to exchange it for one that is in house, after it is checked," Allmann said. "Then a new meter will go in and when a certain number of meters in need of repair come back, we will send them over to Brick at that time."

BTMUA Chairman Patrick Bottazzi said that every utilities authority has to have its meters repaired and overhauled periodically.

"Jackson used to send them out and was paying about $25 and now it will be $15 a meter," he said. "We're happy to save a neighbor $10 a meter."