Somerville probes new water meters after residents report false leak readings

Chair Jesse Klingen convened the Somerville City Council Committee on Public Utilities and Public Works on Feb. 10 and opened discussion of an order asking the director of water and sewer to address resident claims that newly installed water meters were falsely recording air pockets as leaks.

The committee heard from Liaison Hutter, who said the administration is "investigating this very seriously" and working with city staff and the vendor that installed the meters. "We are...working throughout our department and with the vendor that's involved in the installation...to make sure we were fully assessing the situation," Hutter said.

Councilor Matt McLaughlin and Councilor Scott pressed the administration on whether the problem might be widespread. Councilor Scott said constituents reported similar symptoms and described an earlier, unsatisfactory phone response from frontline water department staff: residents were told there were no problems and that meter inspections would not occur until spring and would cost $150. "That sounds a little different than what I'm hearing tonight," Scott said, asking that the committee retain the item for follow-up.

Hutter said staff are determining whether complaints reflect isolated installation errors or a more systemic problem visible in remote meter reporting traces. Hutter told the committee they expect to report back after internal review and work with technical experts. The committee agreed to keep the order in committee for a future update.

No formal corrective action or credit policy for affected bills was announced at the meeting. The committee did not vote on any ordinance or contract related to the meters during the session.

The matter remains under technical review, with the administration and vendor asked to return to a future meeting with findings or proposed remedies.