Utilities Rate Advisory Commission Meeting - September 22, 2021
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Utilities Rate Advisory Commission Meeting - September 22, 2021
The Utilities Rate Advisory Commission held a special teleconference meeting on September 22, 2021, at 5:30 p.m. The meeting included a consent calendar item, two workshops on proposed rate adjustments (recycling/solid waste and storm drainage), an accountability plan update, and a financial update. No public comments were received. The commission voted to approve the minutes from September 7, 2021, and received and filed all other items.
Consent Calendar
- Item 1 – Approval of Minutes for September 7, 2021: The commission voted 4-0 (with one abstention from Commissioner Lee, who was absent from the previous meeting) to approve the minutes.
Public Comments & Testimony
- No members of the public provided comments on any agenda item, including consent, discussion items, or matters not on the agenda.
Discussion Items
- Item 2 – Workshop II on Proposed Rate Adjustment for Recycling and Solid Waste (RSW): Interim Integrated Waste General Manager John Febbo presented a 10-minute overview of the proposed rate adjustment. Key drivers include Senate Bill 1383 (unfunded mandate to divert organic waste), increased processing costs (from $42/ton to $73–$85/ton, rising to ~$100/ton with food waste), COVID-19 impacts (11% increase in residential garbage tonnage, 15% increase in household junk), and the need to replenish the 90-day reserve. Proposed increases total $11.49 over three phases: $3.83 in April 2022, January 2023, and January 2024. The current rate is $42.59. Outreach includes a Prop 218 mailer (multilingual in Spanish, Mandarin, Russian), 20 community meetings so far, and a SURA program with ~8,500 participants. Commissioner Gutowsky asked about outreach to non-English-speaking communities and requested follow-up on accessibility. Commissioner Biering asked about the SURA program’s automatic enrollment process (confirmed via SMUD data exchange) and public feedback from community meetings (mostly positive, focused on food waste recycling). Vice Chair Vander Werf requested that commissioners be included in email lists for outreach events.
- Item 3 – Department of Utilities Accountability Plan Update – 4th Quarter FY2021: Director Bill Busath presented updates on the SURA program (8,500 participants, $3.6M spent in FY21, with a proposed change to a flat 25% discount to keep the program sustainable), community engagement (bi-monthly reports, McKinley Water Vault project, stormwater pollution prevention outreach), climate change tools (American River Basin Climate Change Study predicting more hot days), and drought response (15% voluntary reduction, water alert tier 2 with doubled fines). The city’s residential water usage rebounded only 4% from the last drought, and rebate programs saved 25 million gallons in the quarter. Commissioner Fidell asked for the cost of saved water from rebates to be included in future reports. Commissioner Lee asked about the reduction in the SURA discount from 35% to 25% (response: to keep budget sustainable). Commissioner Gutowsky requested inclusion of commissioners in outreach emails.
- Item 4 – Department of Utilities Financial Update: Supervising Financial Analyst Jackie Rice presented FY21 year-end projections and FY22 adopted budget. All three funds (water, wastewater, storm drainage) are projected to exceed the 120-day working capital guideline. No rate increases in FY22. The COVID-19 pandemic had minimal impact on revenues. No questions from commissioners.
- Item 5 – Storm Drainage Rate Workshop #2: Director Bill Busath presented draft ballot language for a $20 million/year storm drainage fee increase (first increase since 1996). Proposed fees for single-family residential parcels: <0.1 acre ($3.00/month), 0.1–0.25 acre ($5.00/month), >0.25 acre ($7.00/month). Multi-family units: $2.60/unit/month. Non-residential rates based on impervious surface factors (e.g., commercial: 0.0195/sq ft/year). A second survey began September 21 to gauge support, with results expected mid-to-late October. The schedule includes a third workshop, protest mailer, rate hearing in December, council approval in January, and a ballot election ending in March 2022. Commissioner Fidell expressed concern that the multi-family rate (per unit) penalizes high-density vertical housing and said it would make him publicly argue against the measure. He requested examples comparing vertical vs. sprawling apartment complexes. Commissioner Lee suggested adding “no rate increase since 1996” to ballot language and questioned timing during a drought. Commissioner Gutowsky recommended showing current vs. proposed rates on the ballot. Commissioner Fidell also requested survey cross-tabs by city council district or neighborhood to assess equity.
Key Outcomes
- Consent Item: Approved (4-0-1).
- Items 2, 3, 4, 5: All received and filed (no vote required).
- Directives/Next Steps:
- Staff will provide information on outreach accessibility for non-English speakers (Item 2).
- Staff will include commissioners in departmental email lists (Item 3).
- Staff will report the cost-effectiveness of water rebate savings (Item 3).
- Staff will provide examples of storm drainage fee impact on vertical vs. sprawling multi-family properties (Item 5).
- Staff will consider including “no rate increase since 1996” in ballot language and survey cross-tabs by district (Item 5).
- The meeting adjourned without further business.
Meeting Transcript
Okay, thank you, Vice Chair. We are live. And ready when you are. Thank you. Perfect. Thanks, everyone. Good evening. Thank you for joining us for um the Sacramento 22nd, September 22nd, 2021 regular meeting of the City of Sacramento Utility Rate Commission. Um the meeting is now called to order. Uh clerk, can you please call a roll so we can establish a quorum? Yes, thank you. Commissioner Baring. Present. Commissioner Fidel. I'm here. Commissioner Gutowski. Here. Commissioner Lee. Here. Vice Chair Vanderwolf. Here. And Chair Thomas is absent. We have quorum. Thank you. Thank you so much. Just a little housekeeping. This meeting is virtual via Zoom for members of the public who wish to join. Please refer to the agenda for the Zoom link. Once you've joined the meeting and you wish to speak, raise your hand to provide public comment when the chair confirms the public comment speaking period for your desired item. Online, if you're online, click the raise hand on the bottom of your screen. If you're on a mobile app, you can raise your hand by tapping the raise hand option in the more tab. And if you're on telephone, if you call are calling in via telephone to raise hand, dial uh star nine. And then to unmute yourself, dial star six. Speakers will be called on by the last four digits of their phone number if you call in via telephone. You'll have two minutes to speak once you are called on, and the commission um will now hear the consent calendar. Um consent item number one is approving minutes from September 27th, 2021. Madam Clerk, um, are there any members of the public who wish to speak on this item? Thank you, Vice Chair. I have no speakers with hands raised to make public comment on this item. Thank you so much. Umce we have no speakers, so any commissioners who wish to speak on this item. I'd like to move to uh accept the uh the minutes. A second. Great. Thank you, Brian. Thank you, Connie. So am I have a motion by Commissioner? I I'm really bad at pronouncing last name, so sorry, everybody, Brian, and then um a second by uh Connie. Commissioner Connie. Will the clerk call the roll for the vote?
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