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ST. LOUIS — City officials are looking to help delinquent water customers pay their bills.

As the city again prepares to begin shutting off water service to residents behind on their bills, it is starting a relief program that aims to offer customers in arrears one-time payments of up to $500, drawn from the city’s share of federal pandemic aid.

The push accompanies the end of a disconnection moratorium that began in 2020, the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, when the city was trying to keep people in their homes.

But, since then, the ranks of delinquent accounts with more than $500 owed or 90 days late on payments has swelled to approximately 19,000. Their combined balance is about $8 million, a significant sum for a city water department struggling to keep up with maintenance on a century-old system.

“It’s reached a point where we absolutely have to start going back and shutting (off service) for delinquency,” department chief Curt Skouby told aldermen at a recent hearing.

Initial estimates indicate the $1 million program could help up to 1,800 households. Up to 10% of the money could go toward administrative expenses.

The new program is similar to the collector’s Real Estate Tax Assistance Fund program, introduced in 2021 to clear overdue property taxes to help families avoid losing their homes to tax foreclosure. Backers say the program combats neighborhood vacancy and the loss of generational wealth.

That program got $500,000 in federal pandemic aid in 2022.

The city is asking organizations to submit proposals to run the new water program. The deadline to submit proposals is 4 p.m. on July 25. The request for proposals is on the city’s website.