Jackson Mayor John Horhn issued the following statement.
The City of Jackson is looking for every way possible to increase revenue in the water/sewer system without raising rates. The City is offering to help JXN Water accomplish the following:
1. locate the 6,000+ water users who do not have accounts, do not receive bills, and do not pay into the system;
2. obtain payment from the 20,000 customers who receive bills monthly but do not pay them;
3. collect the $75 million in uncollected fees over the last two years;
4. lower debt payments;
5. lobby the State for new revenue streams.
The above recommendations represent $30+ million in new annual revenue before accounting for collection revenues and legislative action.
The City is also demanding that JXN Water turn over sanitation fees that it has kept from paying customers and that it utilize competitive procurement practices to ensure that it is operating as efficiently as possible and at the lowest cost possible.
The numbers say that doing the above will provide sufficient funds to operate the system with no immediate rate increase, even if smaller, later rate increases prove to eventually be needed.
JXN Water has not disputed the revenue potential and savings suggested by the City. JXN Water has not disputed the numbers or the math the City used in making its report and recommendations to the federal court that oversees the system. Instead, it has attacked the City for not supporting a 25% rate increase to the 60% or so of current customers who are paying their bills. It blames past City administrations for not maximizing system revenue, even though JXN Water has been in control of the system for over three years.
The City will continue to look for creative ways to maximize system revenues, minimize system expenses, and grow the paying customer base. The City’s efforts will be more successful if JXN Water will work with it and not against it.
It is also worth noting that JXN Water says it needs this 25% rate increase despite being the beneficiary of unprecedented federal financial resources, including approximately $175 million in grant money to pay for operations and maintenance. In only three years, all of that money has been spent, plus the revenue generated by ratepayers paying their bills, plus approximately $14 million in City sanitation fees it has kept, plus another $6 million in City debt payments.
In other words, since JXN Water took over the system in 2022, it had approximately $175 million in federal grant money, plus about $250 million in collected bills, plus about $20 million in City funds, all of which was designated to be used to operate the system. JXN Water spent that approximately $450 million in less than three years. In the first of those years, JXN Water managed water only. In the last two years, they have also managed sewer.
58 comments:
This mayor is a blessing to the city of Jackson. Seeking sensible solutions to problems which have manifested for far too long.
First 3 items are a complete farce.
The mayor wants to give Jackson free water and for the state to,pay for it
I’m so sick of Jackson
I wish Mississippi could divorce Jackson
Pure politics. Horhn has to "appear" like he's doing something, or at least "fighting" for the poor. Pathetic.
He should be on a soap box educating and notifiying "his people" that they will in fact have their water shut off if they do not get their billing protocol straight with JXN Water - past and present monies to be paid and where to. Hard stop. If he continues to scapegoat and avoid this responsibility, they we might as well still have Lumumbles as the wheel.
The way to get collections up is to enforce shutoffs immediately to everyone. If someone is 60 days behind, shut the water off. Don’t care if they are an apartment complex, business or someone’s preacher. But the city council and Mayor don’t want the shutoffs, which is why their help is not needed.
The city is looking for "creative ways" to increase revenue. Try this: pay or get cut-off, punish those stealing water. Enforce. Problem solved. I suspect most not paying do pay their cell phone bills.
What we need is water equity in Jackson.
The state does not need to give more money. Jackson has already received $800 million. Now they want more. There are over 1000 water systems in Mississippi. If other systems can operate without a gift from the legislature, then Jackson needs to do it as well. Enough is enough.
The mayor needs to read the order this
city signed off on. Jxn Water can raise
these rates without city approval. The
city helped give this system to Jxn Water. The city is suppose to have no
Involvement with this water.
The money was spent rebuilding this
water system from the bottom.
11:55 the city is interfering in this, they
don't have the water.
It was not $175M for O&M. It was $150M
I wish Jackson wasn’t the Capital. Follow Lane to LSU
All the money was not used to operate
the system. He had to rebuild the system. Rebuild billing. Rebuild sewers.
Jxn Water did not get $800M. It was$600M. $450M could only be
used on capital projects.
Why are they not cutting off the water to the non-paying customers?
Why is the mayor talking when the city
is $30M over budget. They are millions
over budget on the street paving.
The level of stupidity from Horhn and Wingate leaves little hope for any meaningful recovery. You should avoid Jackson and not live anywhere close to it, as the rot slowly affects everything near it.
Meet the new mayor same as the old mayor. All doubt removed that horn will be any different.
All of you stupid commenters don't seem to give a shit that JXNwater is pushing rate increase after rate increase to the percentage that are paying their bills responsibly. They were brought in to restore the water system to operability and to BRING THE BILLING SYSTEM AND COLLECTIONS UP TO PAR. They have failed to do the latter and their answer is to fuck the ones of us that meet our obligations up the ass with one or two more rate increases. I understand and agree that the rates need to go up more and I will gladly pay them but if the mayor and the City doesn't push for a full resolution to the shortcomings of JXNWater, we'll keep getting fucked for years to come. Before you know it, we'll be in the same bullshit situation that the CMU has put on Canton ratepayers. It's really easy for a lot of you to make these judgmental statements from the other side of the county lines, but honestly, I just view you all as pussies.
I'm not happy until Horhn's not happy.
Mayor, thanks for checking in.
Is anyone really that naive to believe that this former state senator wouldn't be fixin' to ask for MORE state money?
The monthly cost paid by Jackson water customers is nowhere near the most expensive in the metro area. Get ready to pay higher rates because of decades of neglect and mismanagement by prior administrations. The current non-paying users have free-loaded for years and aren’t likely to get their bill current. Cut off all the non-paying users and the collection rate will be 100%. There still won’t be adequate revenue to operate the system. Rates are going up a lot. That is the price you pay for electing morons to office.
JxnWater Freeloaders can just take sweat-baths if they put water money on cell phone service, car payments and candy for their kids.
Jxn Water is cutting people off.
Nobody will ask the mayor about the
order the city signed that gives Jxn
Water the authority to raise rates.
Speaking about water and fires and Jackson, there is rumor going around that the MSRB, the Rating Bureau as it's known, is contemplating increasing the fire protection rating on the City of Jackson. Currently a 3, raising it will increase insurance premiums for everyone in Jackson. The lack of water pressure and non-functioning hydrants, among other things, are the reasons. You heard it here first.
EVERY city in Hinds County has population of certain folks NOT paying a water bill while their neighbors absorb the cost, then of course you have theft at the office...... Start in Lake Dockery .....because JXN lines go far beyond where you think.
Rankin resident here. My monthly bill (just the wife and I) goes from about $125 a month to over $300 a month in the summer months.
I agree with you about wishing Jackson wasn’t the states capital
That bond payment coming due in a couple months says otherwise.
Yup. And Henifin is merely creating the papertrail of their non-compliance to give to the Federal Oversight of their Receivership status. Would love to see the entire City Council/Mayor held in contempt.
@December 24, 2025 at 8:31 AM - Don't sugar-coat it, tell us exactly how you feel. Oh, and Santa's watching, potty-mouth.
We need to flood the mayor email that
the city does not have the water. Makes
no decisions. Signed off on order Jxn
Water can raise rates without city ok.
The city agreed bond payment will come from city sales tax if Jxn Water
cannot make payment.
The DOJ want comment on this raise.
They have agreement with the city and
the main party in this case.
The mayor doesn't understand anything
about a water system.
10:05. Believe you are wrong! Bond payments won’t come from sales tax. State revolving loan repayments would.
Jackson leaders are looking for a painless way to resolve the issue, but years of neglect, poor maintenance, and a near non-existent billing system has put a high price tag on the path back to normalcy. It doesn't matter what the mayor or city council wants. Wanting something is not enough. If they keep dancing around the campfire, thinking politics will solve this, they'll be right back to crisis mode again.
Sounds like the blind leading the blond. For many years Jackson has let so many people have free water that they now believe they deserve to have free water. The man who is supposed to fix the water system has completely failed at part pf his job.
The answer is simple. If people are not paying for their water, shut them off. Do that one thing and the problem will take care of its self
10:43 Mr. Henifin said the city agreed that if payment cannot be made the
payment would come from city sales
tax receipts.
Good points, and the JFD chief is gaslighting the media by stating that "no problem we have water on our engines." Here's the reality: A structure engine pumps a maximum of 1,250 gal/minute. If all 2-1/2" lines are operating the 500-700 gal tank will be dry in about in about 30 seconds.
There have been several news reports lately about the large number of fire hydrants in Jackson that are inoperable. If the insurance companies were not aware of this, then it should be no surprise that insurance premiums go up now that they know.
In addition to cutting off water to those who aren’t paying, I’ll add another necessary step: PRESS CHARGES against those who are found to be stealing water. And also the plumbers(if you can find them) who bypassed the meters.
MAKE CRIME PUNISHABLE AGAIN.
Jackson is in need of an entire recalibration as to what a civil society entails, and rampant stealing of water is NOT ACCEPTABLE.
When is the city gonna learn they don't
have the water.
Jxn Water inherited a non- working water system, non- working sewer
system, and non- working billing.
The mayor doesn't understand that it costs a lot of money to fix a system that was run into the ground. The money was spent to have good water.
Try holding your breath until that uncollected money is paid.
KF: Do you know if Jxn Water has said
anything about mayor statement?
Worthless piece of paper, Mr. Mayor.
"locate the 6,000+ water users who do not have accounts, do not receive bills, and do not pay into the system" So where the &^%# have you been the last 5 years? And, magically, now Jackson leadership wants to do something? I guess if those 6000 people are relatives/family/friends, its pretty easy to "locate" them.
"obtain payment from the 20,000 customers who receive bills monthly but do not pay them" Somebody needs to slap the person who actually wrote this. So, for all these years, yall could have actually done something productive and CHOSE not to?
How about this, city of Jackson. Pay your own damn bills!
State law will not even allow volunteer firemen to receive free residential water. And this clown is suggesting that THE STATE establish a 'revenue stream' to fund the provision of water for Jackson's citizens?
The mayor didn't mention that Jxn Water could raise rates. Just wonder
why he left that out?
They hate Jacobs. They agreed he had to hire a qualified firm to run plants.
You left out that there are a lot of nutty broke ass folks that have been stealing and robbing from this inheritance six ways from Sunday.
For a long time.
These same nutty broke ass folks want the whole thing back so they can rob and break it again, and they need someone else to give them their walking around money at the same time.
How a many people did the City of Jackson investigate and attempt to prosecute for stealing water in the 10 years before JXN Water had to take control?
Zero?
Fun FOIA: Request any city documents with the phrases "steal water, "water theft," "straight pipe," and "meter bypass."
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