Local legislators obtained a temporary restraining order against Avondale Mills Thursday preventing the company from collecting payment from, cutting service to or imposing any fines on the customers of its water and sewer system.

The restraining order follows in the wake of a decision by the S.C. Public Service Commission (PSC) to reinstate water and sewer bill rates to Graniteville and Vaucluse customers who were surprised to find in July that their rates had risen drastically, some as much as 700 percent.

The bills, with rates topping out above $700 for some, would have been due Saturday.

“We were forced to come to court today,” said Sen. Shane Massey, who has been working with Rep. Roland Smith and Rep. Tom Young on the issue from its outset. The three held a press conference on the courthouse steps Thursday after receiving the order from Judge Michael Baxley. “These folks did not know their bills were going up,” Massey added. [Read more...]

Since my last column in this paper last month, a lot has happened in our district during the month of July. The purpose of this column is to keep you informed about what is going on at your State House and around out district.

First, as to the Avondale Water System servicing both Graniteville and Vaucluse, Avondale’s new water and sewer rates went into effect in July. Apparently, no residents were aware that the increase had gone into effect because Avondale did not mail notice of the new rates until the new bills at the new rates went out to residents. Under the new rate structure, a customer receiving 5,000 gallons of water and sewer service a month will pay $69.00 on the Avondale system. A customer using the same amount of water and sewer will pay $39.40 on the Valley Public Service Authority system. Under the old Avondale rate structure, a customer using 5,000 gallons of water and sewer paid about $12.00 per month. Many residents received bills exceeding $150.00 for the month of July and some bills exceeded $600.00. [Read more...]

The Public Service Commission took up a request from Senator Shane Massey, Rep. J. Roland
Smith, and Rep. Tom Young, Jr. in its weekly meeting this afternoon. The three legislators
expressed concerns about the impact of a recently approved rate increase to the customers of the
Avondale Mills water and sewer system. [Read more...]