Housatonic — The long troubled Housatonic Water Works company recently filed its annual report for 2022. The return reveals that, while both Frederick Mercer and James Mercer yet again received a raise in their salaries, the company made very little investment in its infrastructure.
According to the filed return, company President and Clerk Frederick Mercer, along with Treasurer James Mercer, made $114,148 each in 2022, an increase of $3,325 from their 2021 salaries of $110,823 each. Over the past six years, since 2016, both Frederick Mercer’s and James Mercer’s salaries have increased by $18,551.
Meanwhile, page four of the report lists a balance sheet with expenditures by the company throughout 2022. The company lists that it expended $118 from its plant investment fund in 2022, a decrease of $17,404 from 2021. In 2022, the company expended $3,656 from its general equipment fund, a decrease of $23,833 from 2021. In the “other investments” category, the company lists that it spent $5,416, a decrease of $64,048 from 2021. In total, the company lists $9,190 in total investments for 2023, a decrease of $68,180 from 2021.
As for total assets, the company lists $964,418 for 2022, a decrease of $40,435 from 2021. This includes $630,110 in the company’s notes receivable, a $45,181 decrease from 2021; $4,988 in other current assets, which is a $2,985 decrease from last year; and $150,799 in accounts receivable, which is a $1,143 decrease from last year. The company’s total balance for 2022 is listed as $4,644,940, a decrease of $64,458 from last year’s filing.
Later on in the report, the company lists that it made a $5,271 investment in a purification system. It also lists a $3,656 investment in general office equipment, which includes an Apple iPhone, an HP Laserjet Pro printer, and a NUC small form factor PC computer.
HWW lists $712,512 in operating revenues for 2022, a decrease of $7,747 from 2021. The company lists $737,524 in its 2022 operating expenses, an increase of $20,002 from 2021.
As for the number of customers, the company lists 847 total, including 749 in Housatonic, 22 in Stockbridge, 66 in West Stockbridge, and 10 listed as “vacancies.” The number is a decrease from 2021, as the company lists that it lost one customer each in Housatonic and Stockbridge.
The full report can be found here.
