St. Pete residents still getting giant water bills – with no relief: 'Just no sympathy'

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - Months after the City of St. Petersburg claimed its water billing issues were resolved, residents are still opening shocking bills — and getting little to no help.

What they're saying:

Michelle McConnell has lived in her childhood home for years, always paying a consistent $79 water bill. That all changed in February when she opened a bill for $2,200, alleging she used more than 130,000 gallons of water, enough to fill up a residential swimming pool at least five times.

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"There has to be something wrong. There's no way I could use that much water. You know, I don't have sprinkler systems, I don't have a pool."

A city inspector had McConnell conduct a dye test to check for leaks, and none were found. A city worker also came to investigate but couldn’t explain the astronomical charge.

"The one gentleman that came out and said, 'I can tell you right now, this is a misread. They're not gonna want to hear that.'"

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Dig deeper:

Despite that indication that she had a misread, McConnell’s fight has dragged on for 10 months. The bill continues to arrive, and the city even shut off her water once. 

Now, she pays $279 a month, plus late fees, just to keep her water service on, hoping she’ll eventually be reimbursed.

"It was just like a loop, nothing. Just no sympathy, not ‘Can I put you on a payment plan," said McConnell.

She spends hours on the phone, writing letters and visiting the office in person – all while caring for her father, who is battling cancer and undergoing treatment at Moffitt Cancer Center. In the time she has left with her dad, she is fighting the water bill.

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"Emotionally, I'm just tired, drained from trying to fight something that's not mine. If it was mine, I'd pay it and say, ‘okay, I did it, you know, whatever, I used the water,’ show me where this is possible," she said.

By the numbers:

City data shows that from September 2024 to February 2025, there were nearly 7,000 water bill adjustments, including 3,285 due to meter over-reads.

Despite hiring outside auditors in March, the city said they still don’t know what’s causing the problem. Administrators told FOX 13 that the auditors identified errors but not the root cause.

The other side:

At a recent city council meeting in August, city officials blamed the billing chaos on last year’s hurricanes. But, residents who experienced problems both before and after the storms, believe the city hasn’t gotten to the root of the problem.

Earlier this year, the city council passed new measures designed to make it easier for residents to resolve erroneous bills. However, McConnell’s experience shows, that process isn’t working.

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"We don't have this kind of money to be paying these bills," she said.

What's next:

FOX 13 has reached out to the City of St. Petersburg and the mayor’s office for comment, as well as a copy of the audit.

Separately, the State Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has requested utility records as part of its own broader audit of the city’s finances.

It’s unclear when either investigation will be complete.