An independent audit of Gilbert’s water metering system has not identified any systemwide problems so far, consultants told the Gilbert Town Council during a progress update on the review.
Engineering firm Kimley-Horn, which the town hired to conduct the third-party audit, said the project is examining the town’s water billing system from end to end — including physical water meters, radio transmitters that send meter readings and the internal processes used to calculate water bills.
The update was informational only, with the firm expected to present its final report and recommendations to council April 7.
“We recognize the importance of this project for Gilbert's businesses and residents,” said Paige Helfinstine of Kimley-Horn, who is leading public engagement for the audit. “It's important because everyone receiving a utility bill deserves to feel confident that their bill is accurate every single time.”
The audit is reviewing three main areas of Gilbert’s water billing system: infrastructure, data and operations.
Consultants explained that the infrastructure portion of the audit involves testing a representative sample of water meters and evaluating the town’s advanced metering infrastructure, or AMI, which automatically transmits water usage data rather than relying solely on manual readings.
Tyler Kay, Kimley-Horn’s project manager for the audit, said the firm reviewed data from all 92,000 water meter accounts in Gilbert but only physically tested a sample of meters using industry audit standards.
A total of 450 meters were randomly selected to be removed and sent to a calibrated facility for testing, a sample size that provides a confidence level of about 98% that the results reflect the entire system.
The town replaced each removed meter with a new manufacturer-certified unit.
Consultants also tested 380 radio transmitters connected to meters to confirm the readings being transmitted match the readings shown on the physical meter.
As of last week, the team had collected 408 of the 450 meters selected for testing and had completed field verification of all 380 radio transmitters.
The audit is also reviewing billing data and customer account information across the entire system, including the town’s transition to a new billing platform in 2025.
Consultants said they are recalculating usage data, cross-checking billing records and reviewing account relationships to confirm readings and charges are correctly connected within the town’s customer information system.
“Initial results show no systemwide issues,” Helfinstine said. “There are outliers that are being analyzed individually with ongoing testing to confirm accuracy and recommend process improvements.”
The third part of the audit focuses on the town’s operations and business practices related to billing and meter management.
That review includes examining how billing adjustments are handled, how meter work orders are tracked and how the town investigates unusually high water usage cases to ensure processes are applied consistently.
Consultants also said they have been gathering feedback from residents through public listening sessions and through a project hotline, email address and website created for the audit.
“We want to be as transparent as possible about this audit,” Helfinstine said.
The firm has received 16 comment cards from listening sessions, along with 13 hotline calls, 10 emails and two survey responses related to the audit.
Kimley-Horn representatives told council members they are reviewing every inquiry received as part of the project and encouraged residents experiencing unusual water usage or billing concerns to reach out.
Council members asked no questions following the presentation, and the town will await the consultant’s final findings before considering any potential changes to the water billing system.
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Meet Tom Tom Blodgett joined Independent Newsmedia, Inc., USA, in 2022, when the company acquired Community Impact Newspaper's Phoenix-area properties. Raised in Arizona, he has spent more than 35 years in journalism in the state.
Community: He has served as an instructional professional in the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication since 2005, and is editorial adviser to The State Press, the university's independent student media outlet. He also is director of operations for an 18U girls fastpitch softball team from Gilbert.
Education: Arizona State University with a BS in Journalism.
Random Fact: He lived in Belgium during his freshman year of high school.
Hobbies: Tweeting enthusiastically about ASU softball (season-ticket holder) and grumpily about other local sports (pessimistic fan).
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