Opelousas Treasurer Lawanda Saint Anne reported Monday that total revenue for July was $1,913,001.64 and that the general fund showed a net loss for the month after expenses. Saint Anne said total general-fund expenses for July were $1,000,009.71 and she later summarized a net loss for July of $57,035.

The report also flagged a drop in sales-tax receipts: Saint Anne said the city received about $698,007.69 in the most recent month, roughly $376,000 less than the prior month — a decline she traced to a 1-cent reduction that affected receipts.

Why it matters: The city’s operating cash and its ability to pay routine expenses can be affected when revenue declines and when utility billing is disrupted. Several residents told the council their water bills rose unexpectedly; the treasurer and utility-billing staff said many questions stem from a recent transition to new billing software.

Utility-billing staff described transition problems that affected customers in April and produced “double billing” that showed up when the office later printed missed cycles. Staff said the city could not print or mail bills during the April cycle and in some cases could not accept payments, so the April service period had to be billed later. The billing team said that led to some customers receiving two bills close together for different service dates and that the April bill’s “past due” wording caused confusion even though the city had paused late fees and disconnections while it completed the transition.

Billing staff said the city now uses a new software platform (the prior system had last been upgraded in 2012) and that problems were expected during the upgrade. City staff told the council they are: (1) making usage history available on request to customers who want an itemized month‑by‑month breakdown; (2) publishing notices in the red “messages” area of the bill about special policies (for example, no disconnects and no late fees while the transition was completed); and (3) offering multiple payment methods including a 24/7 kiosk, online payments and a QR code on the statement.

Officials explained specific billing practices: the account number format encodes billing cycle/district information, and the city will resume routine disconnects and late fees in September after the billing cycles catch up. Staff said tellers at payment windows accept payments but cannot research account histories; customers needing usage or billing histories must meet with utility-billing staff.

Several residents described large or puzzling bills during public comment. Treasurer Saint Anne and billing staff said they will investigate individual accounts: they advised customers to bring statements to the utility-billing office for a printed history and offered follow‑up by phone. The city urged customers to call or visit for account-level explanations rather than expecting the front-line tellers to resolve more complex billing-history questions.

Ending: The treasurer’s report was accepted by the council. Billing staff pledged additional written explanations on the city website and encouraged customers to request printed histories or in-person appointments to resolve disputed charges.