Increases for water, refuse collection would be phased into place

GUSTINE – City Hall is planning to increase utility rates to bring revenues in line with the costs of providing water, refuse collection and storm drain services, but will phase in the changes to ease the impact on residents’ pocketbooks.

Council members last week approved details of a three-year plan to raise water and refuse rates and to implement a new storm drain charge, and scheduled a June 3 public hearing to take comment on the proposed increases.

If enacted, residents will see their monthly city bills increase by slightly more than $4.25  a month starting this summer.

The rate hikes and new fee are subject to the terms of Proposition 218, which requires that property owners be given the opportunity to protest the new rate structure.

There was no disagreement among council members that the increases are needed. Refuse collection exemplified that point – the city is paying about $4 a month per household more to provide that service than it is charging customers.

The city proposal calls for creation of a $1.20 monthly storm drain fee, a refuse rate increase from $13.80 to $15.86 a month and a base water rate increase from $13.18 to $14.20 a month. The additional water charge for usage of more than 500 cubic feet a month would increase by a nickel for every additional 100 cubic feet.

City staff had originally proposed a one-time increase in refuse rates to compromise between the cost of providing the service and the rates currently charged. Council members decided, however, to bring that rate in line with the city’s true costs with a second increase in July 2009.

“The way the refuse is now, we’ll have to look at this in a year anyway,” Mayor Rich Ford pointed out. “The question is do we do the refuse collection over two years or three years?”

Refuse includes trash and green waste collection, street sweeping and recycling programs.

The city has fallen behind on its rates, officials conceded, and has been left in the position of having to subsidize the shortfall.

“We tried to get this done a few city managers ago,” Councilmember Joe Oliveira noted.

The city has not raised its refuse rates in six years, and has not increased water rates in four years.

The proposed rate changes would increase refuse rates to $18.22 in July 2009, an increase of another $2.36 a month, and would increase base water rates by $1.80 to $16. Water rates would climb another $2 in 2010.

All rates listed in this story are for single family residential service.

The city will be notifying customers of the planned increases in a mailer that will go out in mid-April, according to city staff.

That notice includes an explanation of the rate changes and instructions on how property owners can protest the rate hikes.