The battle to defend Detroit and its citizens from bankruptcy hit a rough patch when the bankruptcy judge for the city declared that he was unable to stop water from being shutoff to citizens that have been unable to pay their bills.

Detroit Citizens Face Loss of Water

A Detroit judge was asked to issue a temporary restraining order allowing access to Detroit citizens until the city could develop a plan to address water affordability over the next six months. Over half of all households in the city live at or below 150% of the federal poverty level. The judge ruled that there is no constitutional right to water access and forcing the Detroit Water and Sewage Department to continue providing water would cause undue financial hardship.

The power of the court is restricted in a Chapter 9 bankruptcy filing, so while the judge was aware that water shutoffs would negatively affect many of Detroit's poverty-stricken families, ruling to keep the water on was not necessarily in his power.

The Detroit Water and Sewage Department is currently over $6 billion in debt to creditors, with over $89 million due to past-due residential and commercial accounts. Keeping the water on and absorbing the debt of homes that are unable to pay would be a hit to the city's revenues. In a bankruptcy filing, there is intense pressure to keep expenses and spending at a minimum.

Detroit Citizens Fight for Affordable Water

Opposition has noted that many people are not seeking free water, but affordable water. Shutting off water in homes that have children, seniors, or disabled persons living within them may have severe consequences outside of cost-control and efficiency. The Detroit Water and Sewage Department has shutoff water to 19,000 homes in recent months.

Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan is has given citizens a 14 day reprieve period, which will allow them to work out a payment plan with the Detroit Water and Sewage Department to prevent water shutoff. A nonprofit organization has been created to help low-income families make water payments.

Detroit is currently in the process of developing the Great Lakes Water Authority, which will allow Detroit to own water and sewer lines while leasing the pipes that serve nearby suburbs for $50 million each year. The Great Lakes Water Authority will keep water affordable through an affordability fund and cap water rate increases.