About Your Bill

About Your Bill Topics

Billing Options
Payment Options
Monthly Billing Schedule
Disconnection for Non-Payment
If You Have a Question about Your Bill
Trash, Recycling, or Storm Drain Services

Monthly Billing Schedule

The District reads the water meters around the 20th of every month.  The Utility Billing Office generates the monthly bills on the last business day of each month.  All customers should receive their bill during the first week of each month.  If you do not receive your bill, please call us at 682-831-4682.

Payments are due by 5:00 pm on the 20th day of the month.  If a payment is not received by 5:00 pm on or before the 20th day of the month, the account will be considered delinquent and a penalty will be applied.  If the due date falls on a holiday or weekend, the due date will be the next business day.

Termination notices are sent out the first business day following the due date, usually around the 21st of the month  These reflect the current balance plus a 15% penalty on the entire balance due.  The Termination Notice allows 15 additional days to pay to prevent service disconnection.  If the payment is not received by 5:00 pm on the final due date printed on the notice, service will be disconnected.  This is the only late notice sent.

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Billing Options

The District offers the option of receiving your bill by email.  Visit the Email Bills and Online Payments page for more information.

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Payment Options

We accept payments by cash, check, or credit card and offer different options for your convenience.

If you cannot pay your bill before the termination date, please call the Utility Billing office at 682-831-4682 to make alternative payment arrangements before service is discontinued.

By Mail:

Mail your check and coupon to the office at 100 Municipal Drive, Trophy Club, TX 76262.  Please do not mail cash.

In Person:

Drop your check and coupon in the Water Payment Drop Box, located in the first parking spot at 100 Municipal Drive.  This box is accessible 24 hours daily.  Please do not leave cash in the box.

Visit our office to pay by cash, check, or credit card.  Our office is open Monday – Friday from 8:00 am to 5:00 pm.

Online:

Pay online through our website.  Visit the Email Bills and Online Payments page for more information.

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Disconnection for Non-Payment

If service is disconnected for non-payment, a service fee of $25.00 will be added to the total bill and must be paid along with the past due balance to have service reconnected.  A green tag with instructions and required amounts will be placed on the front door knob.  An after-hours reconnect charge of $100.00 must also be paid if reconnect service is requested after business hours or on weekends or holidays.

In the event that service is disconnected for non-payment more than two times in a calendar year, an additional security deposit of $75.00 will be required to restore service,in addition to the $25.00 service fee, an after-hours reconnection charge if applicable, and any outstanding balance on the account to satisfy the minimum amount due.

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Usage and Charges

If you have a concern about the usage or charges on your bill there are several ways to communicate with us. You may submit a contact form online, email the Utility Billing Office  or call us at 682-831-4600. Field staff will be sent to re-read the meter and check the leak detector. After reviewing the available data with the Utility Billing staff, customers may consider the following options.

• If you have the type of meter head that collects a data log (about half the homes in town do) you may request an hourly usage report for the past 60 days. For each report the account will be billed $25.00. Please see section 3.02 of the Rate Order.
• If you do not have the type of meter head that collects a data log, you may ask to be placed on an upgrade request list and we will contact you regarding the options when new meters or heads are available.
• You may request that a meter accuracy reading be made by an outside party. A fee of $125.00 will be charged to your account, but if the original meter reading is found to be in error, you will be credited the $125.00 charge and your bill will be adjusted appropriately. Please see Section 3.02 of the Rate Order.
  • The meter manufacturer has provided some information about how your water meter works. Please be aware that you will receive a new meter when the old meter is removed for testing. Since meters slow down and tend to under register consumption as they age, your new meter will very likely register your consumption more completely than the old one.
• You may request to formally dispute the bill. An average bill will be calculated and no penalties will be applied to the account if that amount is paid while the dispute is investigated. All data will be forwarded to the General Manager for review and a determination.

High usage update
September 22, 2015

The District would like to thank all our customers who have called, emailed, or visited the office to allow us the opportunity to look into their bills. We appreciate everyone’s patience as we continue to assist you. The Utility Billing office is working hard to contact all customers to review their results, and is returning calls and answering emails as soon as possible.

Like many area cities and water districts, Trophy Club Municipal Utility District No. 1 has received a high volume of calls and emails regarding usage and charges on the August bill.  District staff has re-read over 250 meters and pulled hourly usage data from over 85 meters.

No billing or meter problems have been identified by staff, our IT consultant, our billing software company or meter manufacturer. All reports and re-reads confirm that the August bills are correct. The water pumped data shows that in August we pumped in 143,413 million gallons of water to meet customer demand, which was 22.2% more than in July and 96.6% more than in June. The water pumped vs. water sold data was evaluated and, as expected, the District billed customers for less water than we pumped. For more information on water loss review and water meter testing, please see the Water page with links to the General Manager’s presentation at the August 19, 2015 Board Workshop. The video replay is available on You Tube.

Upon review of the data, we noted that for most accounts this August is either typical summer usage, or indicates a return to pre-drought watering habits. We have talked with many customers who did not realize how often their sprinkler system was running or how much water their hoses, sprinklers or pools use. For information on using your water meter to track your usage, please see our FAQ page.  For recent articles about high bill complaints in the DFW area, please see:

• Dallas Morning News – Skyrocketing water bills have North Texas cities double-checking meters – September 19, 2015
• WFAA.com – North Texas residents see skyrocketing water bills – September 20, 2015
• Dallas Morning News – Dallas Water Utilities director: High water bills are not the result of ‘nefarious conspiracy’ – September 21, 2015

September 25, 2015 – DFW area residents are not alone in using more water than in previous months this year.  For more recent articles about high water use in Texas, please see:

• ABC13 Houston – High water bill complaints plague residents across Texas – September 24, 2015
• KVUE.com Austin – Austin Water Utility gives answers for high water bills – September 25, 2015

October 21, 2015 – For updated stories from the DFW area, please see:

• WFAA.com – Frisco has explanation for soaring water bills – October 19, 2015
• Star-Telegram – Spike in some Fort Worth water bills attributed to increased use – October 20, 2015
• Starlocalmedia.com – Worried about a water bill? City video seeks to address Frisco residents’ concerns – October 20, 2015

If you have questions or concerns about your account, please contact the District directly either online or at 682-831-4600, option 2.

High usage update
September 11, 2015

As of today, District staff has re-read almost 200 meters and pulled hourly usage data from over 60 meters. The Utility Billing office is working hard to contact all customers to review their results. We have identified no incorrect reads or billing problems. The meter manufacturer visited on September 10th and verified meter installations at a random sample of properties.

The summary of the first group of data logs shows patterns of consumption consistent with irrigation to be the cause of high usage. When compared to previous summer years, for most accounts this August is either typical summer usage, or indicates a return to pre-drought watering habits. We have also talked with customers who filled pools, installed new landscaping which was watered daily, forgot that they left a hose or drip irrigation running, or who just did not realize how often their sprinkler system was running or how much water their hoses or sprinklers use.

The District would like to thank all our customers who have called, emailed, or visited the office to allow us the opportunity to look into their bills.  We appreciate everyone’s patience as we continue to assist you.  If you have questions or concerns about your account, please contact the District directly either online or at 682-831-4600, option 2.

A message from the District regarding August bills
September 9, 2015

Like many area cities and water districts, our Utility Billing department has received a high volume of calls and emails regarding usage and charges on the August bills.  Despite the information distributed by a Town Council Member, no billing or meter problems have been detected by staff, our IT consultant, our billing software company or meter manufacturer.

As of the close of business today, over 100 meters were re-read and hourly usage reports were downloaded from over 20 meters.  All reports and re-reads confirm the billed usage.  District staff is working hard to review each inquiry and discuss the results with homeowners.  We appreciate your patience as we work to address your concerns, and will return calls and emails as soon as possible.

What We are Doing:

• The water pumped data shows that in August we pumped 143,413 million gallons of water, which was 22.2% more than in July and 96.6% more than in June.  The water pumped vs. water sold data was evaluated and, as expected, the District billed customers for less water than we pumped.  For more information on water loss review and water meter testing, please see the Water page with links to the General Manager’s presentation at the August 19, 2015 Board Workshop.  The video replay is available on You Tube.

• Staff is confirming meter readings for customers who have contacted the District office with concerns.  If you would like to keep an eye on your water usage, please see the “Why is my bill so high? I don’t think I used that much water” section on our FAQ page for more information and a link to an instructional video.

• We encourage customers to conserve water (and save money) by frequently checking the operation and programming of their sprinkler systems.  A broken sprinkler head can waste a large quantity of water each time the system runs.  Sprinkler systems can function unpredictably, especially after power outages, and after the July 29 power outage may be running more frequently than homeowners are aware.

• Staff has manually calculated the billing charges on a random sample to confirm the charges were calculated correctly.  This information was also audited by the billing software company and found to be correct.

• Staff has field checked meter installations at random locations around town and scheduled a visit on September 10th for the meter manufacturer to verify installations.  Some customers received misinformation that we installed new smart meters all over town and believe that is the problem.  There are only 10 smart meters in our pilot program and none of those customers, 4 of whom are Town Council Members, have reported a problem with their bill.

• Staff has contacted other area water systems regarding these issues and all systems are experiencing high customer usage and complaints.  A quick search on the internet also turned up several articles and stories from the DFW area such as:

• • NBC5DFW High Bills Leave North Texans Sticker Shocked- August 31, 2015
  • Denton Record – Chronicle – High Water Bills Raise Questions, Concerns – September 2, 2015
  • Star Local Media – Flower Mound Not Alone in Dealing with High Water Bills – September 3, 2015
  • Dallas Morning News – Residents to Hold Town Hall Wednesday About High Water Bills – September 3, 2015
  • NBC5DFW High Water Bills Baffle North Texans – September 3, 2015
  • Mansfield News  Water Bill Surges Cause Waive of Discontent – September 4, 2015
  • CBS DFW High Water Bills Perplex Some Garland Homeowners – September 8, 2015
  • Dallas News Flower Mound Finds No Errors After Water Bill Inquiries – September 8, 2015

If you have questions or concerns about your account, please contact the District directly either online or at 682-831-4600.

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Trash, Recycling, or Storm Drain Services

If you have questions about the trash, recycling, or storm drain services, please call the Town of Trophy Club Community Development Office at 682-237-2915.