Submitted by Deborah Lavery Powers
Staff Reporter
Melissa Howard’s mother always felt her daughter would one day live on our island. And Mom was right! Melissa moved here 23 years ago and has been serving the community as the Utility Billing Supervisor, Utilities Department, City of Fernandina, for the last ten of those years.
Melissa started coming to the beach when she was still a teen, but didn’t move this way until after she had made a three year career stop at Friedman’s Jewelers in Brunswick, Georgia — her home town. When first on the island, she worked for another jewelry store — right on Centre Street — Robison’s. “Jewelry stores are such happy places to work. It’s the joy of helping someone carefully pick out the right gift for a loved one.”
From Robison’s, it was on to Florida Public Utilities (FPU), where Melissa worked as an Audit Clerk for 14 years.
In June 2003, Melissa moved from the private FPU sector to the government/public sector shortly after the City bought the utilities “ back” from FPU. She came aboard as a customer service representative in what was to become the Utilities Billing Office. Shortly thereafter, the position of Utility Billing Supervisor was posted. Melissa applied. She was selected. And she found herself in a job that she still feels fits her to a tee: that of serving the community and helping the public — often one-on-one.
There were just three people on the Utility Billing staff during the summer and fall of Melissa’s first year. The three, along with members of the Finance Department and the Utilities Department, worked as a team to implement and develop the department. IMS (Information Management Services) provided the software and on-site training. Every aspect of the new program had to be studied and learned, procedures needed to be developed, files converted, accuracy checked and re-checked, tested and audited — and then tested and audited some more — in preparation for the change-over to City generated water bills in October 2003.
The staff, in order to make the transition as seamless as possible, created a bill format that mimicked the format that citizens were already familiar with — the one previously used by FPU.
Melissa explained the steps involved in processing our monthly utility bills — “we do it all, everything from ‘a’ to ‘z’.”
First, the Meter Reader “stops by” some 400-800 water meters each day — often on his Segway – to touch a wand on the top of each meter cover. The wand picks up the reading, and then wirelessly transfers the information to his hand held data “cap.” There are over 8000 “touches” that the wand makes in a month!
At the end of each day, the Meter Reader delivers the data caps to the Utility Billing Specialist (Sue Edwards) who electronically retrieves the information from the caps; audits the readings – making sure that calculations match rates and customers, always checking for anomalies; then bills the customers; prints the bills; audits them again; puts them into envelops — with the help of a machine called a “folder inserter;” — then delivers the envelopes — with the help of an automobile! — to the post office for mailing. The bills are soon delivered to homes/businesses in over 2000 zip codes around the country! Having customers living in so many places “equals” considerable communication back and forth between customers and billing staff — the majority of it being by telephone.
When customers call Utilities Billing, they can depend upon a person, not a machine, answering. There are no menus to wade through when one dials 904-277-7390. You immediately reach someone who can help solve your problem, or find the resources to get it done for you. Melissa feels that direct answering is good customer service — and is a service that hopefully will never be changed at Utility Billing.
Each call to the office is answered by one of two full time Customer Service Representatives (Pamular Bell or Colleen Trotter) or perhaps the part time Office Assistant (Lisa Middaugh). As a multi-utility department handling billing for water, sewer, sanitation, and storm water — as well as for airport hangers, storage units, and other City property leases — the four staff members all serve the public in a variety of ways. They set up new service, transfer and/or disconnect existing service, help customers solve problems, update account information — and also assist Melissa. As Melissa says, “It’s a team effort. Everyone works together” and “Our department attributes much of its success to the leadership and support of our supervisor, Patti Clifford, City of Fernandina Beach Controller.”
When we, as customers, make our choices on how to pay our utility bills, here’s what we decide:
Approximately 3000 of us mail in our payments — making this by far the most popular choice.
Approximately 1100 pay by credit card — which may be done on the web, over the phone, or in person – with no processing charge involved.
Approximately 1750 pay by direct withdrawal from their checking accounts. (If you would like to join this group, please see the link indicated below.)
Approximately 1625 prefer to hand deliver their payments to the office – whether those payments be in the form of credit card, check or cash.
If your choice is to make a payment at the office (or drop off one of the forms mentioned below), your first trip there may be a little confusing if you are the least bit directionally challenged! But if you go West toward the river (not East toward the ocean!) from 8th Street onto Lime Street, and then turn right onto South 5th Street Extension you’ll will find the office on your right just before you bump into the Maintenance Yard gate.
Melissa, in her position as supervisor, helps provide a “second set of eyes,” when needed (“we are all in this together”), works on the budget; creates, reviews and follows daily/monthly/quarterly/annual reports; provides on-going training (“we are always trying to improve the way we do things”); works on collections; watches over the daily structures and routines; and works diligently to find ways to save the City money. She also works with Stateline Advanced Disposal (the City’s contracted waste hauler) regarding sanitation service and billing.
For the last five years, there has been a concentration on collecting debt due the City by customers who left the area without paying their final utility bills. By steadfastly keeping up with accounts involving departing/departed customers, and sending out second copies of the final bill 60 days after the first one is mailed, Utility Billing has made enormous strides in collecting old debt. If the bill isn’t paid following the second notice, or payment arrangements haven’t been made, the account is then forwarded to a collection agency.
A positive money saving process being promoted by the City is e-billing. There are only 900 customers signed up for this service at the moment, but those 900 customers saved the City some $4000 in postage and paper stock in 2012.
If you would like to join the 900, please go to
http://www.fbfl.us/DocumentCenter/View/12405
Print out the form and send it, or hand carry it, to the office. If printing out forms isn’t your thing, just call 904-277-7390 and ask that a copy be mailed to you. And don’t worry if you don’t know your account number. A Customer Service Specialist will be glad to enter it for you!
And then there’s direct withdrawal from your savings or checking account! If you would like to participate in this program, here’s the form to get you started!
http://www.fbfl.us/DocumentCenter/Home/View/6689
Utility Billing has been able to serve in a new way — since August 2011 — through donations made to Love Your Neighbor program. Fifty-five families, in crisis, have been helped through the program which was set up by the City in partnership with the Salvation Army. “When in crisis, you can do without lots of things, but water? That’s almost impossible to do without.” Melissa thanks those who donate to the program.
If you would like to participate, forms to do so may be found at:
http:www.fbfl.us/DocumentCenter/View/6022
Customers may give a one time donation, or sign up to have $1, $2, $3, $4 or $5 donation added to their water bill each month. Again, if printing out forms isn’t your thing, just call 904-277-7390 and ask that a form be sent to you. Or drop by the office and fill one out. No need to know your account number — but if you want to drop off the form, you do need to know how to get to 1180 South 5th Street Extension!
Important publications prepared by other departments are often inserted in utility bill envelops. At no additional postage cost to the city. Another revenue-saving achievement!
Like so many who work hard in public service, Melissa is concerned that there is sometimes a stereotyped perception of public employees not being as productive as those in private industry. She has found that perception to be far from the truth since joining the City! She applauds her fellow City employees as being individuals who are dedicated to serve — and diligently do so.
Out of the office, Melissa’s life centers around fishing, hunting and going to sporting events with her menfolk (Gene, her husband of 18 years, and her 12 and 14 year old sons, Cale, and Garrett). She came to the island in 1990. She later met (on a blind date) “the man of my dreams. He was handsome, charming, and swept me off my feet the first time we danced (literally.) He said I was trying to lead!” Since here, she has also found the perfect way for her to serve her community — by becoming an employee of our City government.
Editor’s Note: After a career in adult education, where writing, course design and development were her “beat”, Deborah now enjoys the world of freelancing, and volunteering. Deborah covers the police beat for the Fernandina Observer writing weekly “Police blotter blasts . . .” We thank Deborah for her many contributions.
May 30, 2013 6:35 p.m.