31

COUNTY ~ MEMORANDUM OF .'. ~

~ Placer· PUBLIC WORKS AND FACILITIES ENVIRONMENTAL UTILITIES DIVISION

County of Placer --------------TO: Board of Supervisors DATE: May 9, 2017

FROM: Ken Grehm, Director of Public Works and Facilities By: Dave Atkinson , P.E. , Utility Program Manager

SUBJECT: Environmental Utilities I Public Hearing I County Service Area 28, Zone 6 - Sheridan Sewer and Water I Proposed Sewer and Water Maintenance and Operation Fee Increases

ACTION REQUESTED After conducting a Public Hearing to receive comments and consider protests, adopt an Ordinance amending Section 13.12.350 of the Placer County Code increasing the maintenance and operation fees for County Service Area 28, Zone 6 - Sheridan Sewer and Water effective August 1, 2017.

Make a finding pursuant to Section 21080(b)(8) of the Public Resource Code that the higher fees are derived directly from the cost of providing service and are therefore exempt from environmental review.

BACKGROUND County Service Area 28, Zone 6 - Sheridan Sewer and Water (Sheridan CSA) currently provides 187 connections (212 equivalent dwelling units (EDUs)) in the community of Sheridan with water and sewer service. Historically, this has been a very financially challenged CSA that required frequent infusions of funds from the CSA Revolving Fund and the County General Fund for ongoing operations.

In 2009, your Board took a number of steps to make the Sheridan CSA more financially stable. These actions included:

• Adopting a 3 year Maintenance and Operation (M&O) fee increase for sewer and water service, which increased fees from $79.08 to $142.03/Mo/EDU,

• Contributing $270,000 from the County General Fund to bridge the operating budget funding gap until 2011 when the fee increase would be fully implemented,

• Providing $435,000 in County General Funds to use as matching funds in order to secure grant funds.

• Paying off the Sheridan CSA's $1 ,370,000 in outstanding loans from the CSA Revolving Fund, and

• Securing a $1 .3 million loan from the Solid Waste Enterprise Fund to provide funding for the Sheridan Water Supply Project.

Using the funding detailed above along with $3.5 million in grant funds, two major projects were completed. The first project was the expansion of the Wastewater Treatment facility to allow it to fully comply with Regional Water Quality Control Board Requirements. The second project was the construction of a new water supply well and storage tank to bring the water system into compliance with new water system reliability regulations. Both of these projects also provided for additional capacity to allow for the long standing (since 1985) new-connection moratorium to be lifted. It was anticipated that the lifting of the connection moratorium would result in new connections that would provide for some additional operating revenue. Since the lifting of the

32

moratorium, no new connections have been made to the sewer or water systems and the Sheridan CSA has instead lost 5 equivalent dwelling units (4 commercial and 1 residential) .

The loss in revenue from the reduction in connections, coupled with increased costs for the operation of the sewer and wastewater systems, necessitates the need to increase user fees to cover operation expenses. In order to soften the impact to customers, a fee increase of 5 percent per year over a two year period as shown in the table below is proposed. (Current rates are shown for comparison)

Effective Date of M&O Fee

July 1, 2011 _( Current) _

___ AugustJ, 2017 ______ _ ___________ July 1, 201_8 _____ _

Sewer-M&O Fee

($/Mo/EDU)

;i,89.12

-·-- - !--

Water-M&O Fee

($/Mo/EDU)

$52.91

$55.56 ·······-··-···-;-- ·---------------

$58. 34

Total Sewer and Water M&O

Fees ($/Mo/EDU)

...................................................

;i,142.03

$149.14 .... ·--··----······· .... ····-·--.. --

$156.59

The proposed fees will result in a 10.25% increase over the fees currently in effect. For comparative purposes, the Consumer Price Index (CPI) over the period 2011 to 2017 increased 11 .5%.

As required by Proposition 218, a letter noticing the Public Hearing was mailed to each of the 187 property owners paying CSA sewer and water M&O fees . These notices explained the need for the increases and provided instructions detailing how to submit an official protest letter. The Clerk of the Board has been the caretaker of all protest letters and will provide a report detailing the number of valid protests submitted by the property owners. The Public Hearing and the proposed increases were noticed in the Lincoln News Messenger. In addition to the required noticing, staff made a presentation to the Sheridan Municipal Advisory Council at their April 12, 2017 meeting.

ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT Pursuant to Section 21080(b)(8) of the Public Resource Code, the proposed M&O fee increases are considered exempt from environmental review provided your Board adopts findings at the time the fees are approved that the fees are derived directly from the cost of providing service.

FISCAL IMPACT Adoption of the Ordinance will increase the monthly sewer and water M&O fees by $14.56 over the next two years from $142.03 to $156.59 per EDU commencing August 1, 2017, and are anticipated to generate approximately $36, 750 in additional annual revenue.

ATTACHMENTS Ordinance

33

Before the Board of Supervisors County of Placer, State of California

In the matter of: An ordinance amending Section 13.12.350, Subsection (E) of Chapter 13 of the Placer County Code relating to Sewer Maintenance and Operation Charges for Placer County Service Area 28, Zone 6 - Sheridan Sewer and Water

Ordinance No.: -----

Introduced: ------

The following Ordinance was duly passed by the Board of Supervisors of the County of Placer

at a regular meeting held ____________ , by the following vote on roll call:

Ayes:

Noes:

Absent:

Signed and approved by me after its passage.

Chair, Board of Supervisors

Attest:

Clerk of said Board

THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS OF THE COUNTY OF PLACER, STATE OF CALIFORNIA, DOES HEREBY ORDAIN AS FOLLOWS:

Section 1: Subsection (E) of Section 13.12.350 Fee Schedules of Chapter 13 of the Placer County Code are hereby amended to read as follows:

H. County Service Area No. 28, Zone No. 6 (Sherdian). The following schedule of charges and fees shall apply to property within county service area No. 28, Zone 6 and are based upon a flow rate of one equivalent dwelling unit (EDU). Calculation of a charge and fee for a use that is billed at a rate other than one equivalent dwelling unit shall be based upon the schedule set forth in subsection E and F of Section 13.12.240.

Page 1 of 2

34

Sewer service charge effestive Jl:lly 1, 2GG9 - $e4 .§8 peF moRtR peF eQIJ. effesti11e J1:Jly 1, 2orn - $77.aG peF moRtl=I peF eQIJ . effestive Jl:lly 1, 2G11 - $89.12 peF moRtl=I peF eQIJ . Effective August 11 2017 = 193.58 l;!er month l;!er EDU. Effective Jul~ 11 2018 = 198.25 l;!er month l;!er EDU.

!sewer connection fee II= $5,549.00 per EDU. I

Water service charge effestive Jl:lly 1, 2GG9 - $38.34 peF moRtl=I peF eQIJ . effestive Jl:lly 1, 2G1 Q - $4e.GG peF moRtl=I peF eQIJ . effestive Jl:lly 1, 2Q11 - $§2.91 per moRtl=I per eQIJ. Effective August 11 2017 = 155.56 l;!er month i;!ei' EDU. Effective Julv 1. 2018 = $58.34 oer month oer EDU.

I Water connection fee II= $3,717.00 per EDU. I Section 2: This Ordinance shall take effect and be in full force and effect sixty (60) days

after its passage. The Clerk is directed to publish it within fifteen (15) days in accordance with Government Code Section 25124.

Page 2 of 2