Village of Saugerties water bills that went out on June 1 must be paid by July 6 to avoid a penalty, according to the instructions on the bill. This represents an extension of the usual grace period in recognition of the hardships imposed by the coronavirus and resulting unemployment. At its regular meeting on Monday, June 15, the village board agreed to grant an extension of the payment date to July 1. Payments have been coming in regularly, said water department superintendent Mike Hopf. However, it is difficult to tell, as most customers pay toward the end of the month, he said.
In response to a question, Hopf said the question of whether late fees for the last bill are being deferred or forgiven has not yet been determined. “Late fees have been held up from being applied to the account,” he explained. Several people said they understood they had been forgiven. Mayor Bill Murphy proclaimed, ”We’re not going back six months from now and saying, Oh, by the way, you owe us late fees from the first quarter.”
Residents who still owe water fees will see those fees applied to the next bill, but without an interest charge. Interest payments on the most recent bill will be deferred through August 1 rather than the date of July 16 shown on the bill.
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