Cotati City Council
Agenda Staff Report
Item type: CONSENT CALENDAR (ACTION)
To: City Council
Subject: ADOPTION OF RESOLUTION APPROPRIATING
ADDITIONAL WATER CONSERVATION IN THE WATER
ENTERPRISE FUND AND APPROVING A SUB-AWARD
AGREEMENT WITH SONOMA WATER
Date: September 10, 2024
Written by: Craig Scott, Director of Public Works/City Engineer Recommendation
It is recommended the City of Cotati City Council adopt a resolution appropriating $12,481 in additional expenditures for conservation reimbursements and increasing revenues of $8,226 in grant funding to the Water Enterprise Fund, from a sub-award agreement with Sonoma Water, the recipient of the US Bureau of Reclamation WaterSMART FY 2023 Water Energy Efficiency Grants Program, funding for the Sonoma-Marin Drought Resiliency Program, and approving the sub-award agreement .
Background
Sonoma Water, acting on behalf of the Sonoma Marin Saving Water Partnership (Partnership), will be administering a $2,000,000 grant from the United States Bureau of Reclamation (USBR) WaterSMART FY 2023 Water and Energy Efficiency Grants (WEEG) program. The proposed grants will reimburse the City for rebates provided to its retail water customers who participate in the City’s Turf Replacement and High Efficiency Washer Rebate programs.
As part of the total grant package for the region, Cotati is eligible to receive funding in the amount of $8,226, with a required match of $10,055, under a sub-award agreement. Therefore, reimbursement totaling $18,281 would be available to customers in our service area who participate in the program. Assuming the the entire conservation budget is expended on customer reimbursements, Cotati would receive grant funding at 45% equal to $8,226.
Analysis/Discussion
In July 2022, Sonoma Water, on behalf of the Partnership, applied for $2,000,000 in grant funds for the Sonoma-Marin Drought Resiliency Program (Program) that will offer consumer rebates for water saving measures for 11 of the 13 water utilities in the Partnership collectively addressing regional water efficiency solutions.
The grant funds and matching City funds will fund consumer rebates for 10,287 square feet of turf replacement at up to $1.50/sq ft and 38 rebates up to $75 each for High Efficiency Clothes Washers for residents within the City’s water service area.
Financial Considerations
The funding from the US Bureau of Reclamation requires a 55 percent funding match by Cotati in the amount of $10,055. The funding match would come from the water enterprise operating budget with an additional appropriation of $12,481 required as the adopted budget only programed $5,800 in conservation funding for both programs ($12,481+$5,800 = $18,281). It is uncertain if the full funding would be utilized within one fiscal year and as such the total expenses could be less but would not exceed the current grant matching program.
This effort required Staff time and legal review which are accounted for within already budgeted staff resources within the water enterprise. Although the reporting requirements are extensive, it’s staff’s understanding that Sonoma Water will consolidate the list of rebates from each partner and perform the reporting on our behalf.
Environmental Issues
This action is exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) because it is not a project which has a potential for resulting in either a direct physical change in the environment, or a reasonable foreseeable indirect physical change in the environment, pursuant to CEQA Guidelines Section 15378.