The Corporation of Shepherdstown Sewer Department raised rates for sewage by 5 percent, which was put into effect July 1, 2011.

According to Mayor Jim Auxer, Shepherdstown Town Council passed the ordinance last month, which increased the rate Shepherdstown residents pay for sewer by 5 percent or 1.5 percent of the median household income.

Auxer explained that the rate had to be raised as mandated by the Infrastructure and Jobs Council in order to meet the qualifications for a low-interest bond.

The $9 million-bond is going toward the construction of the Chesapeake Bay watershed-compliant waste water treatment plant being built in Shepherdstown.

“Nobody else in the state has even started to meet the requirements, and we’ll be finished before they start,” he said.

Auxer said the plant is scheduled to be completed in December of this year.