For City Council Meeting September 8, 2026
TO: Honorable Mayor and City Council
APPROVAL: Tanya Williams, City Manager
FROM: Yazdan Emrani, P.E., Director of Public Works
Title
Request City Council to: (1) Approve the National Pollutant Elimination System Stormwater Permit Implementation Agreement, Santa Ana Region Between the City of Rialto and the San Bernardino County Flood Control District.
Body
RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends that the City Council:
1) Approve the National Pollutant Elimination System Stormwater Permit Implementation Agreement, Santa Ana Region between the City of Rialto and the San Bernardino County Flood Control District
BACKGROUND
On October 19, 1990, the City of Rialto entered, as a co-permittee, into the area-wide National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) Permit with the County Flood Control District of San Bernardino. The NPDES Permit is referred to as the Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System (MS4) and is administered by the California Regional Water Quality Control Board. The current Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System (“MS4”) Permit is issued jointly to the County of San Bernardino, the San Bernardino County Flood Control District (collectively hereinafter referred to as “County”), and the sixteen incorporated cities (“co-permittees”) in the Santa Ana River Watershed portion of San Bernardino County. The San Bernardino County Flood Control District is the Principal Permittee, and its primary responsibilities are to administer the overall stormwater program in conjunction with the cities, lead in the development of programs, act as the liaison with water board staff, and prepare the consolidated required reports.
One of the requirements of the MS4 Permit is that the District and the Co-Permittees enter into an Agreement for the purpose of delegating program responsibilities and establishing a formulated cost-sharing program. This program is designed to comply with Environmental Protection Agency regulations and is mandated by the Federal Clean Water Act.
The City Council previously approved the NPDES Storm Water Permit Implementation Agreement No. 92-315 on April 21, 1992, and the First Amendment No. 95-315 A-1 on November 7, 1995.
In 2010, it was determined that the cost share formula contained ambiguities that prevented the County from annually calculating land use conditions as required under the agreement. As a result, a new Implementation Agreement was developed to establish a revised cost share formula for allocating area-wide MS4 permit program costs among the co-permittees.
The updated formula provided a more equitable method for determining each co-permittee's cost share percentage by balancing the impacts of population, land area, and equal participation, resulting in a fairer distribution of costs among both large and small jurisdictions.
The City Council approved the revised Implementation Agreement on November 23, 2010.
ANALYSIS/DISCUSSION
The proposed new Implementation Agreement, included as Attachment 1, does not modify the existing cost share formula. The current methodology for calculating each co-permittee's share of program costs will remain unchanged.
The most significant revision in the proposed agreement is the elimination of the County overhead rate applied to County staff time spent on area-wide program activities. At one point, this overhead rate reached 117% of direct labor costs. Removing the overhead charge will result in substantial savings to the Area-Wide Program budget. For example, in FY 2024/25, the total program budget was $3,944,093, of which approximately $527,000 was attributable to overhead costs.
Additional revisions to the agreement include:
• Modifying meeting requirements to align with the MS4 Permit requirements, or at a minimum, require quarterly meetings.
• Revising the agreement term so that it coincides with the current MS4 Permit (Order No. R8-2010-0036) and any subsequent MS4 Permits under which the City continues as a Permittee, with no fixed expiration date. The Agreement remains in effect until superseded by a new agreement approved by all parties, and a Permittee may withdraw at the end of any fiscal year with one year's advance written notice to the District.
• Establishing a deadline for co-permittees to pay their annual cost share contributions to ensure timely funding of Area-Wide Program activities.
• Removing obsolete provisions related to grants received under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.
These revisions are intended to streamline the agreement, improve administrative efficiency, reduce program costs, and ensure consistency with current regulatory requirements.
It should be noted that based on the recently released revised Tentative Santa Ana Regional MS4 Permit (Order R8-2026-0034), implementation costs associated with the Area-Wide Program are anticipated to increase significantly, which could have a substantial impact on future program costs for all participating member agencies. The proposed Regional MS4 Permit would consolidate existing municipal stormwater requirements into a single permit applicable across Orange, Riverside, and San Bernardino Counties, and includes additional requirements that may increase implementation, compliance, monitoring, and reporting costs for participating agencies.
The proposed permit has been the subject of extensive review and discussion, with member agencies, raising concerns regarding the potential financial and operational impacts of the additional requirements. As of September 2026, the Santa Ana Water Board has issued a revised version of the Tentative Order and a response to comments, and the permit remains subject to final Board action. Following adoption, the final permit requirements will establish the compliance obligations and implementation schedule applicable to member agencies.
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT
The requested City Council action is not a “Project” as defined by the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). Pursuant to Section 15378(a), a “Project” means the whole of an action, which has a potential for resulting in either a direct physical change in the environment, or a reasonably foreseeable indirect physical change in the environment. According to Section 15378(b), a Project does not include: (5) Organizational or administrative activities of governments that will not result in direct or indirect physical changes in the environment.
GENERAL PLAN CONSISTENCY
The City of Rialto General Plan establishes various guiding principles, goals and objectives through which the City looks to improve the community and protect the quality of life for our residents. This action is consistent with Guiding Principle 3 in the General Plan:
Our City government will lead by example, and will operate in an open, transparent, and responsive manner that meets the needs of the citizens and is a good place to do business.
Approval of this action complies with the City of Rialto General Plan Goals and Policy:
Goal 5-4: Protect the health and welfare of the public, environment, and economy by providing for the safe and responsible management of hazardous materials and wastes.
Policy 5-4.1: Continue to identify hazardous material users and generators within the City through the use of field surveys, inspection programs, and licensing requirements.
Policy 5-4.2: Coordinate City enforcement efforts with San Bernardino County, the California Department of Health Services, the Regional Water Quality Control Boards, and the Air Quality Management District, for the management and disposal of hazardous wastes.
LEGAL REVIEW
The City Attorney’s Office has reviewed the agreement and approved it as to form.
FINANCIAL IMPACT
Operating Budget Impact
The cost share for the member agencies of the Area-Wide San Bernardino County Stormwater Program is calculated using a formula based on an equal share allocation, population, and land area. The resulting cost share percentage is then applied to four program budget categories: Monitoring, Public Education, Program Management, and Training.
For FY 2025/26, the City of Rialto's cost share percentage under the current Implementation Agreement formula is 5.33%, resulting in a contribution of $177,594. The proposed Implementation Agreement does not modify the existing cost share formula.
Although the overall Area-Wide Program budget for FY 2026/27 increased from approximately $4.11 million to $4.94 million, the County is applying approximately $2.28 million in interest revenue, reserve fund balance, and prior-year budget carryover toward the FY 2026/27 program. Consequently, the total amount that must be funded by the participating permittees decreases from approximately $3.33 million to $2.66 million.
For FY 2026/27, the City's cost share percentage decreased to 5.11%, resulting in an estimated contribution of $135,797, which is a savings of $41,797. This contribution was budgeted during the 2026/27 budget adoption. The 2026/2027 invoice was charged to account number 10107313-52011.
Capital Improvement Budget Impact
There is no impact on the Capital Improvement Budget.
Licensing
A Business license application and payment of a Business License tax is not required for this action.
ATTACHMENTS:
MS4 Implementation Agreement