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Sewer fee fight costs Worcester $27M, court rules — and the bill could keep growing
The Massachusetts Appeals Court upheld a lower court's ruling that orders the city of Worcester to pay more than $30 million to Holden for overcharging the town for using the city's sewer system.
Associate Justices Maureen E. Walsh, Paul Hart Smyth and William J. Meade on Monday affirmed the previous ruling of Superior Court Judge James Manitsas, who in 2023, ordered Worcester to pay Holden $26,525,786 with 12% added on post-judgment interest for each year the judgment is not paid.
Assuming Worcester does not pay in 2025, the city would owe Holden about $29.9 million.
A spokesperson for the city of Worcester told MassLive the city received the court's decision and is 'reviewing its options for appeal at this time.'
Holden officials did not immediately respond to requests from Masslive for comment on Monday.
The city was found guilty by a jury in 2022 for overcharging Holden by more than $10 million in sewer transport fees. The jury awarded $14.6 million to Holden after the verdict. Worcester lawyers tried to have the verdict set aside, according to the Telegram & Gazette. Judge Manitsas, however, upheld the judgment in 2023 and also added $2.2 million in costs and $11.3 million in pre-judgment interests.
In response, the city of Worcester appealed the verdict to the Appeals Court.
A 'May 2000 Sewer Use Agreement allowed Worcester to impose disproportionately high costs on Holden, which paid significantly more to transport sewage than rate payers in Worcester,' according to court documents.
A lower court rejected Worcester's argument based on 'freedom of contract,' and the appeals court affirmed the decision, allowing Holden's unjust enrichment claim to proceed.
Holden's accusations of Worcester overcharging the town for sewer transport fees date back to 2013.
The town filed a lawsuit that year, claiming that the sewer transport fees reviewed by both Worcester and the State Department of Conservation and Recreation were unreasonable and an unconstitutional tax. Holden officials claimed they were being overcharged about $1 million per year.
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Read the original article on MassLive.
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