CSA7 Customer Advisory Committee

Ways to pay your CSA7 water bill ON TIME

Ways to pay your CSA7 water bill ON TIME

Good news!
It is possible to pay your bill online, and it now is possible for you to discover the amount of your bill without having to wait for the paper bill to arrive by mail (and being there to receive it). Then you can arrange for payment to be made in a timely manner, without having to worry about USPS delays even if you're away during that very narrow window.

This is how you can avoid late fees on your water bill, even if you are away from home when the bill comes in the mail.

Currently there are 4 ways to pay your quarterly CSA7 water bill:

• mail a paper check with the tear-off stub
  (we've had to do this ever since the County took over billing), and worry about delayed round-trip delivery: waiting for the bill, then worry about the check arriving in time
  Pre-Pandemic, it was possible to pay a bill in person, but that is no longer possible
  
  We want to avoid the delays by not waiting for the bill and not waiting for the check to get there.
   
• pay online at the County website with a credit/debit/card (with fee)
• pay online at the County website with an Echeck drawn on your bank (with fee)
• schedule bill payment at your bank and avoid fees
  
  We want to avoid fees charged for paying online by credit card or E-check.

OK, How do I pay my bill online?

Step 1: Find the amount due

The first step is that you access the County web site after the first business day of the quarter to find you billed amount due. You'll need the account number that is shown on any of the paper bills you've received in the past. Keep That Number Handy.

Visit this link: https://govhub.com/ca-sanmateo/services/water to get your water bill amount

Type your account number in the Search box and hit Return. The amount due on your most recent bill will be shown, along with a blank invoice template (the County web site doesn't appear to display the bill correctly, it's blank)

Step 2: Arrange payment, by any of the means below

• Pay online using the 3rd-party County payment service (which charges fees)
  On that County web page where you found the amount due you'll find a button that says “Pay Now” Click that button to add the payment to an online cart.
  Then click on the little cart icon that scoots in at the bottom to see the Payment options. Each one incurs a service charge; take your choice
• Mail a check
  Print the blank bill on that County web page, write your account number and service address on it, and mail it with your check in your own envelope
• Use your bank's Bill Pay service Schedule a payment with your bank. Most checking accounts have a way to schedule a payment at no charge. Every bank does it differently. My bank lets me schedule a recurring payment for an amount that will be safely above the expected bill, then lets me edit the next single pending payment with the exact amount I got from the County web site.