City of Mesa

PROVIDING QUALITY MUNICIPAL WATER FOR MORE THAN 100 YEARS

For over a century, the City of Mesa has remained dedicated to delivering water that meets or exceeds over 100 state and federal quality standards. Our primary mission is to provide your family with safe and reliable water service. We're pleased to report that in 2017, your tap water successfully met all health requirements.

Mesa vigilantly protects its water resources, and we're proud to present this overview detailing our monitoring efforts. This report contains essential information about your daily water supply - where it comes from, what testing was performed, and what was found in the water delivered to your home.

To ensure tap water safety, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has established regulations limiting contaminant levels in public water systems. This report summarizes recent water quality monitoring conducted by Mesa and how your water compares to these standards.

Our highly skilled water quality inspectors, analysts, chemists and treatment specialists work diligently to ensure high-quality water consistently reaches your home. The data presented comes from over 18,500 tests conducted on approximately 3,100 samples collected to meet regulatory and process requirements. Water undergoes daily, weekly and monthly testing at Mesa's state-certified laboratory and through external laboratories, all overseen by various federal, state and local regulatory agencies.

UNDERSTANDING WATER CONTAMINANTS

Water sources (both tap and bottled) include rivers, lakes, streams, ponds, reservoirs, springs and wells. As water travels over land surfaces or through the ground, it dissolves naturally-occurring minerals and sometimes radioactive materials, and can pick up substances from animal presence or human activity.

Both tap water and bottled water may reasonably contain at least small amounts of certain contaminants. The presence of contaminants doesn't necessarily indicate a health risk. EPA regulations limit contaminant levels in public water systems, while the FDA regulates bottled water as a food product with equivalent standards.

For more information about contaminants and potential health effects, call EPA's Safe Drinking Water Hotline at (800) 426-4791 or visit www.epa.gov/yourdrinkingwater/safe-drinking-water-hotline.

POTENTIAL CONTAMINANT TYPES INCLUDE:

• Microbial contaminants: Viruses and bacteria from sewage treatment facilities, septic systems, agricultural operations, and wildlife
• Inorganic contaminants: Salts and metals occurring naturally or from urban runoff, industrial/domestic wastewater, oil/gas production, mining, or farming
• Pesticides and herbicides: From agriculture, urban runoff, and residential uses
• Organic chemical contaminants: Synthetic and volatile organic compounds from industrial processes, petroleum production, gas stations, urban runoff, and septic systems
• Radioactive contaminants: Naturally occurring or resulting from oil/gas production and mining activities

1. Can I defer the payment of my summer property tax?

   Property owners with eligible properties may file a completed summer property tax deferment form with their city or township treasurer before September 15, or before their summer taxes are due, whichever comes later. A valid deferment allows summer property taxes to be paid on or before February 14 without additional penalties or interest. Taxpayers can qualify if they meet specific criteria and own a primary residence with a total gross household income of $40,000 or less for the previous tax year, and are disabled, blind, paraplegic, hemiplegic, quadriplegic, an eligible serviceperson/veteran/widow/widower, or at least 62 years old.

2. What types of property qualify for property tax deferment?

   Eligible properties include residential real property serving as the taxpayer's primary residence, and agricultural real property if the gross receipts from agricultural or horticultural operations in the previous year (or average from the previous three years) equal or exceed the owner's total household income from the previous year.

3. Who defines the terms disabled, blind, paraplegic, hemiplegic, quadriplegic, or eligible serviceperson, veteran, or widow/widower?

   These terms are defined in the Income Tax Act of 1967, P.A. 281. For example, "blind" refers to a person with permanent visual impairment where visual acuity is 20/200 or less in the better eye with corrective glasses, or where peripheral field vision has contracted to an angular distance of 20 degrees or less.

4. What counts as total household income for summer property tax deferment?

   Household Income includes total income (taxable and nontaxable) for all household members. This encompasses wages, salaries, tips, business income, rent, farm income, Social Security (minus Medicare deductions), SSI, DHS and FIP benefits, child support, alimony, unemployment, disability compensation, pension benefits, interest, gifts exceeding $300, and other income sources. It includes income from home sales regardless of age or federal tax exemption status. Household income does NOT include federal economic stimulus payments, foster grandparent/senior companion program payments, energy assistance grants, or government payments made directly to third parties.