County Leaders Speak Out Ahead of Columbia’s High-Stakes Water Vote

Issue #625

December 10, 2025

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📰 County Leaders Speak Out Ahead of Columbia’s High-Stakes Water Vote

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County Leaders Speak Out Ahead of Columbia’s High-Stakes Water Vote

Two of Maury County’s leaders — County Commissioner Gabe Howard and County Mayor Sheila Butt — have issued strong public statements ahead of Thursday’s Columbia City Council vote on the proposed $500 million CPWS water project and the projected rate increases tied to it. Both leaders took to social media this week to outline their concerns, urge regional cooperation, and call for broader public involvement before the council moves forward. Their full statements are included below.

From Gabe Howard, Maury County Commissioner’s post…

Tomorrow night, Columbia’s City Council will vote on one of the biggest financial and infrastructure decisions our region has faced in decades — and every ratepayer’s wallet is on the line. 

This is a $500+ million new Duck River intake and treatment plant, the shutdown of the existing riverside intake, and multiple CPWS rate increases projected to total up to 150% over the coming years for families, seniors, and small businesses across Maury County and beyond.

What makes this even more troubling is this: just weeks ago, the Duck River Watershed Planning Partnership formally submitted its regional water recommendations to the Governor of Tennessee. Those recommendations are built on regional cooperation and shared responsibility — yet Columbia is now charging full steam ahead with zero regard for regionalization, while positioning its own city-owned utility, Columbia Power and Water System, as the de facto regional authority.

Let me be very clear: No city-owned utility should ever be the regional authority.

Everyone affected must have a seat at the table — Maury County, Spring Hill, Mt. Pleasant, and Maury County Water System customers included.

Even more concerning, a sitting member of the Watershed Partnership — Jonathan Hardin, President of CPWS — is now pushing an agenda that directly benefits CPWS’s pursuit of regional dominance. That is dangerous, conflicts with the spirit of true regional planning, and undermines public trust.

I’m not opposed to clean, reliable water. I am opposed to locking our community into half a billion dollars of debt, massive rate hikes, and centralized control without a fair funding formula or true regional governance.

That’s why I’m calling for a PAUSE & PLAN:

Pause this rushed vote

Plan with a true regional framework

Build a fair funding formula that protects long-time residents and current ratepayers

Ensure every affected system has representation

WHEN: Tomorrow — Thursday, December 11, 2025 at 5:30 PM
WHERE: Columbia City Hall, Council Chambers
                    700 N Garden St, Columbia, TN

WHAT YOU CAN DO:

Show up. Be heard. Demand a pause and a real plan before we saddle generations of families with debt and skyrocketing water bills.

Please share this and tag a neighbor — if you pay a water bill, this affects you.

From Maury County Mayor Sheila Butt’s post…

WHAT I KNOW ABOUT THE VOTE COMING UP ON THE 148% RATE INCREASE FOR WATER FROM CPWS AT THE COLUMBIA CITY COUNCIL MEETING THIS COMING THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11TH.

Almost from the day I took office over 3 years ago, water has been a continuing issue in Maury County. I tried very hard to get the water entities from CPWS, Maury County Water, Spring Hill and Mount Pleasant together in the beginning. 

I then asked to be put on the DRA (Duck River Agency) and was also appointed to the DRWPP (Duck River Water Planning Partnership) by the Governor. He knew of my desire to get the providers to work together. There is constant tension among water suppliers over territory and rate payers. All of them need both. This is true across the state except in the few areas that have a Regional Water Authority governed equally by the region.

My contention is that the water stewardship belongs to all of the residents of the state and should not be controlled by individual entities. There is a situation called “the tragedy of the commons” in law referring to shared resources that are overexploited by self-interest to the detriment of everyone else in the community. 

In our case there is one entity that controls most of the water in Maury County; CPWS. Maury County Water buys all of its water from CPWS. Mount Pleasant is contracted to buy water as needed, and Spring Hill buys water now while planning to buy much more in the future.

There are Water Authorities in Tennessee and in other states that alleviate much of the competition by working together. They are not managed by the County or the Municipalities. The make-up of a successful Regional Water Authority would include the Mayors of each municipality in the region, county Mayors, representatives from the water providers, and a representative from the state (i.e TDEC, State Representatives, or Governor’s appointee). This make-up assures that everyone in the region has a voice, the water is sold at the same price to everyone, and the economies of scale eventually make water cheaper than it would be with one utility buying from another. 

The number one priority from the DRWPP is for TVA to raise Normandy Dam. That would alleviate the fear of drought and provide more resiliency and water flow throughout the Duck River Basin. We are also continuing to study reservoirs, storage and other alternatives. There are recommendations to fund a feasibility study for regionalization of our water supply in the next year, that will include a Regional Water Authority.

The $500 million dollar CPWS project (not including interest) would supply 12 million more gallons of water for the next 25 years. It appears that the loans and the bond payments may outlast the benefit. 

We have a recent development of a possible shovel ready project in the next 18 months for up to 7 million more gallons of water for a $51 million dollar cost. It is also possible that the CPWS intake in Williamsport could eventually be the first leg to the Tennessee River in the future. However, that will take a huge investment by the State or the Federal Government. There will be 50 miles or more of pipeline to install. Maury County can’t afford that. It would be easier to get that funding if we are all working together.

It is detrimental to the rest of the County when one entity, CPWS, controls practically all of the water in Maury County and that entity is owned by the City of Columbia. That puts everyone else in the county at their discretion for water. They can decide who gets water, where the letters of availability go, and consequently where the growth occurs. 

Let me make this clear. This is not a City vs. County problem. I am TEAM MAURY as you all well know. The issue is that the seven member City Council is preparing to make a decision that affects all of rural Maury County and two other municipalities in the County. There is not one member of any other city or from rural Maury County on the Council. The Council members are elected by Columbia City residents to represent THEM. 

The vote should be put to a referendum with everyone in the county having a voice. If that is not done, the Council is disenfranchising half of the residents in Maury County. Basically, that is taxation without representation.

This huge debt will be on the backs of all of Maury County, not only for the next five years, but realistically at least for the duration of 30-40 years of loan repayments. 

We need to step back, think logically, and not rush into a $500 million debt that will burden us for 30-40 years and is only a band aid to ever getting water from the Tennessee River. We know that growth itself will not pay that debt.

NOW is the time to work together and show the State that Maury County can find a solution to the constant competition and be a model for the rest of the State to follow. We need to request funding as a region from them and from our Congressmen before we ever take such a leap.

Last year, I had a meeting in my office with someone from each of the municipalities and their utilities concerning the water issue. Mayor Chaz Molder made the comment that he had been the Columbia City Mayor for six years and had never sat in a meeting with all of those entities represented. 

It’s time to quit the competition that costs everyone in Maury County, and find a solution before the City Council votes for a project that will cost our children and grandchildren a high price for drinking water for our families for many years to come.

The Thursday night City Council vote should to go to a referendum, or be voted down until we look into all other options before taking on a burden of such high cost to everyone in Maury County. 

-SKB

She also included…

A very Recent message from the Power of 10 Summit by Vanderbilt Baseball Coach Tim Corbin:

Coach Corbin’s message was clear: success in baseball doesn’t come from isolated talent. It comes from shared purpose, disciplined communication, and commitment to the long haul. Middle Tennessee has that same potential.

When we share information, coordinate across county lines, and recognize the unique strengths each jurisdiction brings, we become more than a region divided by lines on a map. We become a unified, resilient team — capable of achieving outcomes none of us could reach alone.

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Thursday, December 11th

Todd Ciprian - Tito’s Spring Hill, 6–9 PM
Taylor Borton - Whiskey Alley Saloon, 7:30–9 PM

Friday, December 12th

Open Mic Night - Grinder’s Switch Winery, 6–9 PM
The Def Leprechaun Band - McCreary’s Irish Pub, 7–9 PM
Troy Castellanos - Whiskey Alley Saloon, 7:30–9 PM
Justen Harden - Puckett’s, 7:30–9 PM
Escape - Fozzy’s Bar & Grill, 8–11 PM

Saturday, December 13th

One Christmas Evening - The Mulehouse, 7 PM
Kirwan! - McCreary’s Irish Pub, 7–9 PM
Southbound Crows - Turnpike Tavern, 7:00 PM
Michael Rix - Puckett’s, 7:30–9 PM
The Open Range Band - The Boondox, 8:00 PM
Benji & The Jets - Fozzy’s Bar & Grill, 8–11 PM

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