City of Corona
Staff Report
400 S. Vicentia Ave.
Corona, CA 92882
File #: 22-0358
REQUEST FOR CITY COUNCIL AND
CORONA UTILITY AUTHORITY ACTION
DATE: 05/04/2022
TO: Honorable Mayor and City Council Members
Honorable President and Board Members
FROM: Utilities Department
SUBJECT:
Acceptance of the California Department of Community Services and Development’s Low-Income Household Water Assistance Program.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:
The Low-Income Household Water Assistance Program is a one-time federally funded relief program providing financial assistance to low-income households to reduce water and wastewater arrearages.
One-time payments up to $2,000 are issued to income-eligible households via direct payments to water systems to assist with past due water and wastewater bills accrued during any time period.
Community water systems must be enrolled in the direct payment program in order for households to receive the benefit.
RECOMMENDED ACTIONS:
That the:
a. City Council authorize the acceptance of the Low-Income Household Water Assistance Program funds in accordance with all applicable program guidelines and state and federal laws.
b. City Council authorize the City Manager, or his designee, to execute any related documents that are consistent with or in furtherance of the City Council’s actions hereunder. c. City Council authorize the City Manager, or his designee, to prepare and process any budgetary adjustments to receive and record Low-Income Household Water Assistance Program funds.
d. Corona Utility Authority review, ratify, and to the extent necessary, direct that the City Council City of Corona Page 1 of 3 Printed on 4/28/2022
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File #: 22-0358
d. Corona Utility Authority review, ratify, and to the extent necessary, direct that the City Council take the above actions.
BACKGROUND & HISTORY:
The Utilities Department (UD) submitted an enrollment package to participate in the Low-Income Household Water Assistance Program (LIHWAP). LIHWAP is a one-time federally funded relief program to help low-income households pay past due water and wastewater bills. LIHWAP is designed as an arrearage response program that will provide one-time payments up to $2,000 to qualifying residential accounts with past due water and wastewater bills. The benefit can cover customer’s past due balance, current charges, fees, and taxes, with the goal to restore services or prevent service disconnections.
The California Department of Community Services and Development (CSD) is the designated administering agency of LIHWAP. CSD has contracted with local service providers (LSPs) that will be responsible for local administration of the LIHWAP program, conducting outreach and promoting program awareness to low-income households, conducting eligibility determination and applicant intake, identification of LIHWAP benefit payment amount, and responding to and resolving customer complaints.
CSD requires that LIHWAP benefits can only be issued to households whose community water systems (including water and wastewater) are enrolled to receive direct payments from CSD via its third-party funds disbursement partner, HORNE LLP. Water systems enrolled in the direct payment program will be responsible for accepting the LIHWAP benefit payments on behalf of households, confirming benefits have been credited to the customer accounts, confirming that services have been restored or disconnections prevented, assisting with promoting the program to customers, and notifying customers of the LIHWAP benefit that has been applied to their account.
LIHWAP is expected to commence in May 2022 and operate through August 31, 2023.
ANALYSIS:
LIHWAP is intended to serve as a complimentary program to work in conjunction with other COVID19 economic relief programs such as the California Water and Wastewater Arrearage Payment Program (CWWAPP). UD was awarded $2,408,142 from CWWAPP in January and March 2022 to reduce past due water and wastewater bill balances accrued for all residential and commercial customers during the COVID-19 pandemic relief period between March 4, 2020 and June 15, 2021.
Remaining residential water and wastewater arrearages for UD customers after CWWAPP funds have been applied is $1,745,631. This amount can potentially be reduced if income-eligible households apply for LIHWAP assistance, which can be applied to arrearages accrued any time during the grant period, up to August 2023, to further assist low-income customers with their outstanding balances.
Staff recommends that Council accept this grant funding and authorize the execution of any related documents and necessary budgetary adjustments to move forward with assisting low-income customers.
FINANCIAL IMPACT:
As grant funding is awarded to eligible households, the funds will be appropriated into the COVID-19 City of Corona Page 2 of 3 Printed on 4/28/2022
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File #: 22-0358
As grant funding is awarded to eligible households, the funds will be appropriated into the COVID-19 Arrearages Funding Project Account (76620) to help offset the remaining residential water and wastewater arrearages for UD customers, and an offsetting increase in the revenue budget in the same amount will be made to the Water Utility Grant/Agreement Account (Fund 571) and the Water Reclamation Utility Grant/Agreement Account (Fund 573).
ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS:
This action is exempt pursuant to Section 15061(b)(3) of the Guidelines for the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), which states that a project is exempt from CEQA if the activity is covered by the commonsense exemption that CEQA applies only to projects that have the potential for causing a significant effect on the environment. Where it can be seen with certainty that there is no possibility that the activity in question may have a significant effect on the environment, the activity is not subject to CEQA. This action is an acceptance of a grant and there is no possibility that accepting this grant will have a significant effect on the environment. Therefore, no environmental analysis is required.
PREPARED BY: ERIN KUNKLE, BUSINESS SUPERVISOR
REVIEWED BY: TOM MOODY, DIRECTOR OF UTILITIES
City of Corona Page 3 of 3 Printed on 4/28/2022
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