RESOLUTION R2025-XX
RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF MANTECA, STATE OF CALIFORNIA, DETERMINING THAT THE PROPOSED SEWER RATES COMPLY WITH CALIFORNIA’S PROPOSITION 218 AND THAT THERE WAS NO MAJORITY PROTEST AGAINST THE PROPOSED SEWER RATES; APPROVING THE 2024 SEWER RATES COST OF SERVICE STUDY; SETTING UPDATED SEWER RATES; AND AUTHORIZING THE CITY MANAGER OR DESIGNEE TO TAKE ALL APPROPRIATE ACTIONS NECESSARY TO CARRY OUT THE PURPOSE AND INTENT OF THE RESOLUTION WHEREAS, on March 5, 2024, the City of Manteca (“City”) adopted the 2024 Final Sewer Master Plan (“2024 SMP”). With completion of the 2024 SMP, staff now has an accurate accounting of the funding needed for the maintenance and operation of existing assets and development of future assets; and WHEREAS, the Manteca Municipal Code imposes on sewer customers the requirement to pay sewer rates to cover the City cost of providing sewer services. The City worked with its consultants at Stantec to develop the 2024 Sewer Rate Study. The 2024 Sewer Rate Study includes a comprehensive cost of services review of the City’s sewer rates and a new rate structure that is compliant with all legal requirements, including Article XIII-D, Section 6 of the California Constitution (“Proposition 218”); and WHEREAS, the Sewer Rate Study for Manteca (“Sewer Rate Study”), dated January 10, 2024, is attached hereto as Exhibit A and incorporated herein by reference, and sets forth proposed sewer rates that do not exceed the City’s reasonable costs of service, proportionately allocates those costs to the City’s sewer customers, complies with Proposition 218, and includes the written basis for the proposed sewer rates; and WHEREAS, pursuant to the provisions of Proposition 218, prior to extending, imposing or increasing sewer rates, the City must hold a public hearing to consider the rates and mail written notice of the public hearing (“Proposition 218 Notice”) to impacted rate payers and property owners at least 45 days prior to the public hearing to consider such modifications to the sewer rates together with an explanation of:
(1) the amount of the proposed rates.
(2) the basis on which the rates are calculated.
(3) the reason for the rate modifications.
(4) the date, time and place of a public hearing to consider the rate modifications; and WHEREAS, under Proposition 218, ratepayers and owners of property receiving City sewer services may protest the proposed rates by submitting a written protest, prior to the close of the public hearing. While both ratepayers and property owners may submit protests, only one protest per parcel will be counted. The City currently provides sewer service to 29,797 parcels, therefor if a majority of parcels (14,899 or more) receiving sewer service submit written protests against the rate update, the City Council cannot adopt the proposed rates; and WHEREAS, on December 17, 2024, the City Council adopted Resolution R2024-234, approving the notice of intent to increase the monthly sewer rates, initiating proceedings under Proposition 218 to schedule a public hearing to consider updates and increases to sewer rates, and authorizing the City Manager or designee to take all appropriate actions necessary to carry out the purpose and intent of the resolution; and WHEREAS, additionally, the City is choosing to comply with Assembly Bill 2257, which requires any property owner or ratepayer that may wish to bring a judicial action challenging the rates to submit an objection to the proposed sewer rates prior to the deadline established by the Council as part of the ratemaking process. The objection must include all of the information specified in the Proposition 218 Notice and it must be submitted separately from any protest. Prior to or during the public hearing, the City must respond to all of the objections, in writing, including the grounds for which a challenge is not resulting in amendments to the proposed rates. Any judicial action or proceeding to challenge the sewer rates shall be subject to the time limits and requirements set forth in Government Code section 53759; and WHEREAS, pursuant to AB 2257, which became effective January 1, 2025, if the City complies with the requirements in Government Code section 53759.1, then ratepayers must bring an objection regarding the proposed sewer rates to the City Council’s attention prior to the deadline established by the Council as part of the ratemaking process and any judicial action or proceeding to review, invalidate, challenge, set aside, rescind, void, or annul the sewer rates shall be subject to the requirements set forth in Government Code section 53759.2; and WHEREAS, in compliance with Government Code section 53759.1, the City did all of the following as part of the Proposition 218 process to consider the sewer rates:
On December 17, 2024, the City adopted a resolution approving the Notice of Intent to increase the Monthly Sewer User Rates, initiating proceedings under Proposition 218, scheduling a public hearing to consider updates and increases to the Monthly Sewer User Rates, and authorizing the City Manager or designee to take all appropriate actions necessary to carry out the purpose and intent of the resolution.
The City established a deadline of 5:00pm on March 3, 2025, to submit a written objection to the proposed sewer rates.
The City made its proposed sewer rates and the Sewer Rate Study, which includes the written basis for the sewer rates required by Government Code section 53579.1, available to the public on January 15, 2025, which is at least 45 days before the March 3, 2025 deadline to submit a written objection The City collected sewer ratepayer information from its utility billing system and collected property owner information from it’s GIS database, compared the two databases for any duplicates and compiled one list of Proposition 218 mailer list.
On December 18, 2024, the City hired ABS Direct, Inc. to handle the mail-merge, printing, stuffing of the envelopes, and mailing of the Proposition 218 Notice.
The Proposition 218 Notice, attached hereto as Exhibit B, was mailed to affected rate payers and property owners before January 15, 2025, which is at least 45 days before the March 3, 2025 deadline to submit a written objection, which fully complied with the requirements of Proposition 218 and contained the following information:
A link to the Sewer Rate Study and a statement that the Study would be mailed to any ratepayer or property owner upon request.
A prominently displayed statement that all written objections must be submitted to the City Clerk by the March 3, 2025 deadline and that a failure to timely object in writing bars any right to challenge the proposed sewer rates in court and that any such action will be limited to issues identified in such objections.
All substantive and procedural requirements for submitting an objection to the proposed sewer rates.
The City posted both the Sewer Rate Study and the Proposition 218 on its website at https://www.manteca.gov/departments/engineering/sanitary-sewer-system.
The City mailed the Sewer Rate Study to any ratepayer or property owner that requested it.
The City provided at least 45 days for a ratepayer or property owner to review the proposed sewer rates and the Sewer Rate Study and to timely submit to the City Clerk a written objection to the sewer rates that specifies the grounds for alleging that the sewer rates do not comply with Proposition 218 or any other applicable law.
On January 29, 2025, the City held the first community meeting at the Transit Center located at 220 Moffat Blvd., Manteca, CA 95366.
On February 22, 2025, the City held a Facebook Live event for impacted sewer ratepayers and property owners that are not able to attend the in-person events. The Facebook Live event was recorded and made available online: https://www.facebook.com/cityofmanteca/videos/1154142179790022.
On February 26, 2025, the City held the second community meeting at the Transit Center located at 220 Moffat Blvd., Manteca, CA 95366.
As of March 3, 2025, the City received no valid objections.
On March 5, 2025, the City held the third community meeting at the Transit Center located at 220 Moffat Blvd., Manteca, CA 95366; and WHEREAS, if the City adopts the proposed sewer rates in compliance with the requirements of Government Code section 53759.1, no person may bring a judicial action or proceeding alleging that the sewer rates do not comply with the California Constitution or other applicable law, unless that person submitted to the City Clerk a timely, written objection to the sewer rates specifying the grounds for alleging noncompliance. The issues raised in any such action or proceeding shall be limited to those raised in such an objection unless a court finds the issue could not have been raised in such an objection by those exercising reasonable diligence; and WHEREAS, on March 18, 2025, the City Council conducted a public hearing, considered all information related to this matter, including any supporting reports by City Staff, any written comments or protests submitted by members of the public, all objections and responses, all comments provided during the meeting, and at the conclusion of the hearing determined that a majority protest did not exist.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, by the City Council of the City of Manteca, as follows:
The City Council hereby finds that the facts set forth in the recitals to this Resolution are true and correct and establishes the factual basis for the City Council’s adoption of this Resolution.
The City Council hereby finds that this Resolution is not a project under Public Resources Code Section 21065 and CEQA Guidelines Section 15378(b)(4) because the Resolution does not have the potential for resulting in either a direct physical change in the environment, or a reasonably foreseeable indirect physical change in the environment, as the Resolution creates government funding mechanisms which do not involve any commitment to any specific project. The Resolution is also exempt from CEQA as there is no possibility for causing a significant effect on the environment, per CEQA Guideline Section 15061(b)(3). The Resolution is policy-oriented and would create a funding mechanism for the development of future sewer facilities. When and if specific sewer projects are developed and proposed for implementation, the environmental impacts of such facilities would be evaluated in accordance with CEQA and City practice. Finally, the action is exempt from CEQA Guidelines Section 15273(a) as the resolution is adopting updated sewer rates that are necessary to meet the operating, maintenance, and capital project funding needs of the City's sewer utility and to maintain service within the City's existing service area.
The City Council hereby determines that the sewer rates referenced herein are in compliance with the California Constitution Article XIII D and California Government Code sections 53755 and 53759.1.
The City Council finds and determines that, based on the entire record before the City Council, including but not limited to the Sewer Rate Study and the Staff Report and attachments thereto, which are incorporated by reference as if fully set forth herein:
Revenues derived from the proposed sewer rates will not exceed the funds required to provide sewer service.
Revenues derived from the proposed sewer rates will not be used for any purposes other than that for which they were imposed.
The amount of the sewer rates imposed upon any parcel of land or person as an incident of property ownership will not exceed the proportional cost of the service attributable to the parcel.
The sewer rates imposed for a service or services that are actually used by, or immediately available to, the owner of the property in question.
The sewer rates are not being imposed for general government services.
The City Council hereby approves and adopts the Sewer Rate Study attached hereto as Exhibit A.
The City Council hereby determines that, having not received any valid written objections, the City was authorized to proceed with the protest hearing required by Proposition 218 and hereby finds that a majority protest to the sewer rates does not exist.
The City Council adopts the sewer rates, set forth in Exhibit C, which is attached hereto and incorporated herein by this reference.
If any provision, section, paragraph, sentence or word of this Resolution, or the application thereof to any person or circumstance, is rendered or declared invalid by any court of competent jurisdiction, the remaining provisions, sections, paragraphs, sentences or words of this Resolution, and their application to other persons or circumstances, shall not be affected thereby and shall remain in full force and effect and, to that end, the provisions of this Resolution are severable.
Effective Date. This Resolution shall take effect on May 1, 2025. The sewer rates set forth in Exhibit C will go into effect as stated therein.
I HEREBY CERTIFY that the foregoing Resolution was duly adopted by the City Council of the City of Manteca at a public meeting of said City Council held on the 18th day of March, 2025, by the following vote:
AYES:
NOES:
ABSENT:
ABSTAIN:
MAYOR: __________________________
GARY SINGH
ATTEST: __________________________
CASSANDRA CANDINI-TILTON
CITY CLERK
R2025-XX Page 1 of 1 March 18, 2025
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