FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WOWO): A group of taxpayers in Hoagland suing the Allen County Regional Water and Sewer District was shut down by a state appeals court Monday.

The suit was over the District’s decision to “standardize” rates across the 40 jurisdictions the regional district serves, according to the Journal Gazette.

They first sued last April after the plan revealed that some neighborhoods would end up seeing a 53% increase in their bills. It works by having those with higher rates pay less, while those with lower rates would see theirs go up.

The taxpayers accused the district of not following applicable laws and procedures, while the county argued that if they didn’t unify the rates, they’d miss out on $2-million of state grant money.