City of Port Lauaca issued the following announcement on July 17
On February 3rd, the City’s computer system was the victim of a malware attack which completely disabled the billing system. After several months and many manhours of work, we are very excited to announce that the lost data has been restored to the point that we can once again generate utility bills.
So, first things first…. THANK YOU! for your patience and cooperation over the past several months. Please carefully read all the information provided here and feel free to email us at info@portlavaca.org or phone 361-552-9793 with any questions.
Next … Please don’t be alarmed if your bill appears to include any incorrect information. Take some time to carefully check the name on the account, the service address and mailing address. If anything does not look quite right or your bill is addressed to “Current Occupant”, please give us a call at 361-552-9793 so we can work on getting the information corrected.
1) The utility bill accompanying this information sheet is the bill you should have received last February. You will soon receive 5 more bills - for March, April, May, June, and July.
2) If you have been paying monthly on your account since February, you will see a credit balance on this bill. A credit balance appears with a minus sign such as -$286.95. This will continue with each following monthly bill until the credit balance is depleted, after paying each monthly charge. If you still have a credit balance after these 6 bills, that balance will be applied to future bills.
3) Since February, the City has not and still is not charging late fees or disconnecting services due to nonpayment. Be assured that we will wait until after a few months of normal billing before considering charging late fees again.
4) If you haven’t made a payment since January and aren’t able to pay your balance all at once, just call the water department at 361-552-9793 and we will work with you to set up a payment plan.
WAIT!! … what about my automatic bill pay???
• All automatic payment authorizations (Direct Debit Program) that were in effect prior to February 3 have been deleted. You will need to complete and submit a new Direct Debit Authorization form to be reenrolled in the program. You may pick up a form at City Hall or download it at www.portlavaca.org. Please follow the directions on the form and mail it or drop it off at City Hall. If you have turned in an authorization form since the system has been down, we already have it on file.
• It may take a few months before the automatic bill pay feature is up and running again. We want to make sure that the system is fully back up and running smoothly before beginning the automatic payments.
Can I pay online now?
YES, you can make payments online on the City’s website, www.portlavaca.org, but understand that the balance displayed online reflects your payments, but may not include all charges yet.
Finally, we want to thank you again for your patience during this time. Please consider following us on FACEBOOK and remember that the Council meets on the 2nd Monday of every month. Due to COVID-19 concerns, those meetings are open to the public via ZOOM and FACEBOOK LIVE. Please feel free to call
Original source can be found here.
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