For Utilities Commission Meeting August 20, 2024
TO: Honorable Chairperson and Commission
APPROVAL: Toyasha Sebbag, Assistant to the City Manager
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Utilities Manager Update.
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Water and Wastewater/Sewer Rate Adjustment Update
The City Council adopted an adjustment to Water and Wastewater/Sewer rates, set to take effect on January 1, 2025. The last rate adjustment was in January 2018.
Understanding the impact of rising inflation and operational costs on residents, the City Council, at its July 23, 2024, Meeting, approved a one-year suspension of the Utility User Tax (UUT) for all single-family, multi-family, and mobile home water and wastewater accounts, including applying the temporary UUT suspension to standby charges for these ratepayers served by Fontana Water Company, Rialto Water Serves, and West Valley Water District. The three (3) water agencies that charge Rialto’s UUT were notified by letter of this change on July 31, 2024. This one-year suspension will be effective from January 1, 2025, through December 31, 2025.
This targeted relief measure focuses exclusively on residential accounts, ensuring that single-family homes, multi-family units, and mobile home residents benefit directly from the tax suspension. The temporary suspension does not extend to commercial, industrial, or institutional accounts.
The annual UUT for water and wastewater brings in approximately $2.1 million and $2.0 million respectively to the General Fund. Of that amount, approximately $600,000 is attributed to water single-family, multi-family, and mobile homes, and approximately $1.7 million is attributed to wastewater single-family, multi-family, and mobile home households. This totals $2.3 million, which is approximately 12% of the $19.1 million in UUT that the City is projected to collect for the 2024-25 fiscal year. The temporary suspension of the UUT on single-family, multi-family, and mobile home water and wastewater accounts will reduce General Fund revenues by $2.3 million. The City’s current anticipated surplus for the 2024-25 budget is approximately $2.5 million. The $2.3 million reduction in revenue will still allow the City to maintain a balanced budget for the 2024-25 fiscal year.
Lastly, the City Council took a three-pronged approach to adjust water and wastewater/sewer rates by simultaneously transferring a $30 million loan from the General Fund back to the Water and Wastewater/Sewer Funds and approving the one-year suspension of the UUT for single-family homes, multi-family units, and mobile home residents. The $30 million transfer would likely be used to supplement future rate stabilization and capital improvement needs. Thereby providing crucial financial relief to residents while maintaining the integrity and sustainability of essential services.