In an effort to provide quicker relief to citizens going through financial difficulties, Wright City’s Board of Aldermen last week unanimously approved a new policy for collection of late bill payments.

The new rules allow city hall staff to form payment agreements, without prior approval from aldermen, to collect money owed for city services, such as trash pickup. Payment agreements allow struggling customers to pay late bills over an extended period of time, without receiving additional late fees.

Previously, residents had to get approval directly from the board of aldermen for payment agreements, meaning they sometimes had to wait weeks before finding out whether they would owe additional late penalties. With the new policy, most customers will be able to get a quick answer about their payment agreement, said Alderman Ramiz Hakim.

“The spirit of the policy is to expedite some of the issues citizens were having getting payment agreements approved. So we’ve decided to empower our city staff to do that,” Hakim said.

All payment agreements must still be approved by the city administrator. The new payment policy outlines how different late bills will be treated, based on amount owed:

• Anyone who owes $100 or less can get an agreement to pay off their bill over the course of 90 days.

• Anyone who owes $100-$300 must make a 50-percent down payment immediately, and must make payments over 120 days to pay off their bill.

• For accounts owing $300-$500, a 50-percent down payment is necessary, and the customer must make payments over 180 days. However, these agreements must receive final approval from the board of aldermen, even if the city administrator approves.

Anyone who owes more than $500 must seek relief directly from the board of aldermen.

Anyone who receives a payment agreement will not be able to get another agreement for a year after they’ve completed their payment.

“This is to stop the phenomena of needing a payment agreement every three months,” City Administrator Jim Schuchmann commented.

Alderman Michelle Heiliger questioned what would happen if someone actually does have ongoing financial challenges within the same year. Schuchmann replied that the policy only governs city staff, and that the board of aldermen is free to override the policy if it chooses.

Alderman Hakim asked why all payment agreements need to be approved by the city administrator, rather than front office clerks.

“I will certainly encourage the staff to do the leg work. My approval is just a check and balance ... that if they enter an agreement, there’s a second set of eyes to say, ‘Yes, this is a proper agreement,’” Schuchmann said. He added that city staff will be allowed to complete agreements, even if he is not present.

The policy also declares that city staff are able to write off charges that were placed on an account in error. Previously, the board of aldermen needed to approve that correction.