ONSTED — The village of Onsted is contemplating a change to the way village residents pay for water.

Although commercial properties in the village have meters, residences do not, village president Robert Schafer said.

“Every residence pays the same amount for water and sewer, regardless of how much they use,” Schafer said.

That system, he said, can pose an unfair burden on people who live alone, including older residents who may have fixed incomes.

Schafer said he thinks the eventual goal needs to be installing residential water meters for each of the 300-plus homes in the village, but because that could be a lengthy and expensive project, he has proposed that the village move to a system where residential water rates are based on the number of people living at each residence.

Village council members discussed the idea at their Jan. 13 meeting but did not take any action. The question is being referred to the committee of the village council that deals with infrastructure, and tat committee will come up with a recommendation to bring back to the full council, Schafer said.