State mandated. Sure they got tons in grants BUT they still have 5 million in debt which is crushing for a small municipality like Emmitsburg. Keep in mind Emmitsburg is nearly half the size of Brunswick just to get an idea of the size and how crushing this debt load is. 400k a year in costs(that will also only go up) are huge for this community and it is only going to get worse.
Commissioners voted this past week to increase rates to fund construction of a new state-mandated wastewater treatment plant. The new plant comes with a $20 million price tag, and the town has been awarded $14.5 million in federal and state grants toward the cost. The town proposes to fund the remaining cost with a $5.5 million loan from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, necessitating quarterly payments of $51,000.On top of the loan payment, the new plant will cost the town $48,000 per quarter to operate, bringing the quarterly tab to nearly $100,000.
via Emmitsburg sewer rates could rise by 50 percent or more – The Frederick News-Post Online.