© AP?Paul SancyaFlint resident Genetha Campbell gets free water
Last week Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder (R) declared a state of emergency over the level of lead being found in Flint's tap water, and this week he
activated the state National Guard to help provide residents with bottled water, filters, and lead testing kits.
But even in the midst of this crisis, city residents aren't just being charged for their poisoned tap water — they're being threatened with shutoffs if they don't quickly pay their bills.In 2011, Flint lawmakers imposed
a rapid 35 percent increase in water rates, against a city law that requires utility hikes to be implemented gradually, and started issuing shutoff notices to those who were past due. A judge halted the shutoffs last summer, ordering the city to undo the increase and revise customers' bills. But the shutoff notices resumed in November based on the prior rates, going out to about 1,800 past due households.
And while they were paused for the December holiday season, they have
once again resumed this week. Finance Director Jody Lundquist could not tell Michigan Live how many notices are expected to be sent out in this round.
Even residents who aren't behind, though, are frustrated that they're still being billed for water they can't even drink. "The city is still billing residents for the contaminated water being pumped to their homes and expecting immediate payment," Sylvia Orduno of the Michigan Welfare Rights Organization explained in an email to ThinkProgress.
Comment: Monsanto's long history of death and destruction appears to be finally catching up with them, and it cannot happen soon enough.