STAFF REPORT
City of Lancaster
PH 8
7/14/2026
TN
Date:July 14, 2026
To: Mayor Parris and City Council Members
From: Patti Garibay, Director – Community Development
Nicole Jones, Manager – Community Development
Subject:Lancaster Sewer System Service Charges for Fiscal Year 2026/27 and Proposed Sewer Service Charge Increases
Recommendation:
Open the public hearings on (1) the Fiscal Year 2026/27 Lancaster Sewer System Service Charges and the annual report filed pursuant to Health and Safety Code section 5473, and (2) the proposed sewer service charge increases; receive testimony; and adopt Resolution No. 26-__, continuing both public hearings to Tuesday, August 11, 2026, at 1:30 p.m., in the Council Chambers, and directing publication of notice.
G.C. Section 84308: No
Fiscal Impact:
The existing sewer service charge is $78 per sewage unit. A single family residence is considered one sewage unit. There are approximately 58,200 sewage units for which an estimated $4,539,634 would be collected on the tax rolls at the existing rates. Separately proposed increases to the sewer service charges will be considered at the continued public hearing on August 11, 2026; if the proposed increases are not approved, the existing charge would continue for Fiscal Year 2026/27.
Background:
On December 12, 2006, City Council adopted Resolution No. 06-245, requesting withdrawal from the Consolidated Sewer Maintenance District. On April 24, 2007, City Council introduced Ordinance No. 876, adopting Chapter 13.09 of the Municipal Code, establishing a sewer service charge, and also adopted Resolution No. 07-89, fixing the time and place for a public hearing relative to the collection of a sewer service charge beginning in Fiscal Year 2007-2008.
On May 8, 2007, Council adopted Ordinance No. 876. On June 26, 2007, after a public hearing, Council adopted Resolution No. 07-124 ordering and levying an operations charge and a 2 4
6 3
replacement charge in the Lancaster Sewer System for Fiscal Year 2007-2008, and approved the maximum sewer service charge. The City began operations and maintenance of the sewer collection system on July 1, 2008, as directed by City Council.
Each year, staff prepares an Engineer’s Report for the City Council to determine the actual amount of the sewer service charge needed to fund the maintenance of the Lancaster Sewer System. The Engineer’s Report for Fiscal Year 2026-2027 has been prepared and filed with the City Clerk, together with the annual report describing each parcel receiving sewer service and the amount of the charge for each parcel.
In addition, on May 26, 2026, the City Council adopted Resolution No. 26-25, declaring its intention to consider proposed increases to the sewer service charges and setting a public hearing for July 14, 2026. As required by Article XIII D, section 6 of the California Constitution and Government Code section 53755, notice of the proposed increases and of the hearing was mailed to the record owner of each identified parcel on May 30, 2026, at least 45 days before the hearing.
Notice of the public hearings is required to be published before the hearings may be concluded.
So that publication may be completed, staff recommends that the City Council open both public hearings, receive testimony, and continue both hearings, without closing them, to the City Council’s regular meeting of August 11, 2026, at 1:30 p.m., in the Council Chambers, as provided in the attached resolution. Notice of the filing of the annual report and of the continued hearings will be published on July 28 and August 4, 2026 pursuant to Health and Safety Code section 5473.1 and Government Code section 6066. Written protests against the proposed increases may be submitted until the close of the continued public hearing; if written protests are presented by a majority of the affected parcel owners, the increases will not be imposed.
At the continued hearings on August 11, 2026, the City Council will consider either the resolution adopting the proposed increased charges or, if the increases are not approved, the resolution levying the charges at the existing rates and adopting the annual report — not both.
Attachments:
1. Resolution No. 26-__ — continuing the public hearings on the Fiscal Year 2026/27 sewer service charges and annual report and on the proposed sewer service charge increases to August 11, 2026, and directing publication of notice.
2. Final Engineer’s Report.