Iolans will be given the option to round up their utility bills to the next dollar to support a local agency that gives aid to utility customers.
Iola City Council members approved Monday a Roundup for CURB policy.
The beneficiary is the Community Utility Relief Board, a non-profit program administered by the Iola Area Ministerial Association.
CURB has been around for several years, Council members noted, but has largely sat idle because of a lack of funding.
The Round-up program would allow IAMA to restart the aid.
The Rev. Jocelyn Tupper, a member of the Ministerial Association and pastor at Wesley United Methodist Church, explained how the program works.
If a customer owes $11.43, his bill would be rounded up to $12, with the additional 57 cents going into the CURB fund.
The funds would be dispensed by CURB to help cover utility charges for individuals and families in need of assistance.
Participation is voluntary. Customers must first sign up for the program before it is implemented.
Tupper noted the most a customer could be charged is 99 cents a month, or $11.88 a year.
Tupper noted some rules are in place to prevent folks from receiving CURB aid multiple times. The Ministerial Association frequently works with Humanity House, an organization that serves impoverished clients, Tupper said, and will do so again with CURB. She assured Council members procedures would be in place to prevent double-dipping from beneficiaries of both CURB and Humanity House.
The vote to institute the Roundup program passed, 7-0, with Councilman Ron Ballard absent.
