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NATCHEZ — Adams County residents who get their water and sewer services from Great River may have little hope of lower rates or better service anytime soon.

The Mississippi Public Service Commission voted 3 to 1 on Wednesday to take another rate increase request from Great River under further advisement.

Wayne Carr, who represents the state’s southern district including Natchez and Adams County, cast the sole vote to deny the water and sewer utility’s request for a rate increase. Northern District Commissioner Chris Brown and Central District De’Keither Stamps voted to continue to consider Great River’s request to charge more money for its services to its customers.

Approximately 280 residences in the Morgantown area get their water and sewer service through Great River. Great River basically owns the pipes that carry water to those homes. The actual water and sewer services come from the City of Natchez, with whom Great River contracts to provide those utilities to the residents.

Residents in the area served by Great River pay a flat rate of $107.99 for water and sewer services, regardless of the amount of water used.

A number of the residents packed the Adams County Board of Supervisors meeting on Oct. 21, and listened to a Great River representative discuss rates and issues in providing water service via pipes and equipment that need much repair and replacement.

Great River, whose parent company is Central States Water Resources of St. Louis, bought Oakland Water Works, owned by David Huber of Huber Construction Co., in 2021. Since that time, the cost of water has increased to Great River’s Natchez customers from $51.40 to $107.99.

Aaron Silas, director of regulatory operations for Central States Water Resources, said the Morgantown residents pay a flat fee for water service because the water meters connected to homes do not work.

At the public service commission hearing to consider the matter on Tuesday in Jackson, Huber said the meters do work. In fact, he said he and his wife went around to all of the homes and read the meters recently and that they are functioning properly.

Huber told the commission Tuesday if he had known Great River would raise the water rates as they have, he would not have sold his water company to them.

Several people from Natchez attended the hearing on Tuesday in Jackson, including District 4 Adams County Supervisor Ricky Gray.

“Everybody in this room knows what’s going on is wrong, and we just need to find a solution to try to fix it,” Gray said at the hearing.

Carr, who was at the meeting of the Adams County Supervisors in Natchez on Oct. 21, said Great River was allowed to institute its rate increase when it filed for one in July 2022. Carr said it has never been approved by the commission. He also said if the commission does not approve it, Great River had put up a bond which would be used to refund the increased rate payments to residents.

However, on Thursday morning in an interview on the Gallo Radio Show, Carr said, “The rates have been put in place now and there’s not much we can do about it. The previous commissioners approved it.”

“I have been to Adams County in Natchez and those folks are just up in arms. The quality of water versus what they are paying for it is not equaling out,” Carr said.

While the commission voted to take the rate increase request under advisement, a representative at the Mississippi Public Service Commission on Thursday afternoon said she did not know when the commission would again consider the rate increase.