RESOLUTION NO. ____
A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF RIALTO, CALIFORNIA, ADOPTING A REVISED SCHEDULE OF WATER AND SEWER/WASTEWATER RATES.
WHEREAS, the City of Rialto (“City”) provides “utility services” for water service and sewer/wastewater service to property owners (who may also be referred to as “owners”) within the relevant City service area, and establishes the amount of water rates and sewer/wastewater rates to be charged customers in accordance with Rialto Municipal Code (“Municipal Code”) Chapters 12.04 and 12.08 (particularly Municipal Code Sections 12.04.060 and 12.08.200) and applicable law; and WHEREAS, the City provides utility services to its customers in cooperation with the Rialto Utility Authority (“RUA”) under the terms of a Lease Agreement (Water Enterprise) and a Lease Agreement (Wastewater Enterprise), both of which are dated May 1, 2001; and WHEREAS, based on the terms of the Concession Agreement dated March 27, 2012, the City and RUA have delegated specified authority to Rialto Water Services, LP (“RWS”) to operate the water service system and the wastewater service system, including RWS’ authority to bill and collect fees from owners and customers for those water services and wastewater services, while the City and RUA have retained the authority to establish the amount of rates to be billed in accordance with Government Code Section 5956.6 (see Concession Agreement sections 5.8 and 11.6); and WHEREAS, California law authorizes the City to charge a fee to the property owners or property owners’ “tenants” (who may be collectively referred to as “ratepayers” or “customers”) for the proportionate cost of providing water services and wastewater services to each customer in accordance with the procedural and substantive requirements of the voter-approved ballot measure known as “Proposition 218” (California Constitution Article XIII D; as it is implemented by the Legislature at Government Code sections 53750 – 53759.2; and as it has been judicially interpreted by appellate court decisions). The City refers to those fees as water rates and sewer/wastewater rates (which may be referenced herein individually as “water rates,” “wastewater rates,” “sewer rates,” or “sewer/wastewater rates”; and they may be referenced collectively as “utility rates” or “rates”); and WHEREAS, Under Proposition 218, the City’s water rates and wastewater rates are each considered to be a “fee” for a “property-related service” (also referred to as a “property-related fee”), subject to the particular requirements of Constitution Article XIII D, Section 6. A property-related fee is one imposed upon any parcel or person as an incident of property ownership. In general, the City may only increase its existing rates if the City (1) calculates the rates in accordance with Proposition 218, (2) conducts a public hearing before the City Council (“City Council”), as described in Resolution 8414 adopted by the City Council on October 28, 2025, and (3) a “timely written protest” is not submitted by property owners representing a majority of the parcels served by the City; and WHEREAS, the City hired Water Resources Economics, LLC to prepare the 2025 Water and Wastewater Rate Study, dated October 2025 (“Rate Study”) which documents that the water and wastewater rates set forth in this resolution comply with the substantive requirements of Proposition 218; and WHEREAS, Under Government Code sections 53759.1 and 53759.2 (“AB 2257”; Chapter 561, Statutes of 2024), the City may establish a supplemental process for objecting property owners to exhaust administrative remedies, as described in Resolution 8414 adopted by the City Council on October 28, 2025, by which the City took specified actions in response to any “timely written objection.” Under this process, only an owner who submits a timely written objection will have a right to challenge a proposed increase in utility service charges through a legal proceeding; and WHEREAS, in accordance with Article XIII D to the California Constitution and Government Code sections 53759.1 and 53759.2, a Notice of Public Hearing on the proposed revised schedule for water and sewer/wastewater rates was mailed on November 6, 2025, to all property owners of record and water and sewer/wastewater service customers at least forty-five (45) days prior to: (a) the deadline for submission of written objections on December 22, 2025, at 4:00 p.m., and (b) the January 13, 2026 public hearing; and WHEREAS, as of the deadline for submission of written objections on December 22, 2025, at 4:00 p.m., the City had received no written objection specifying any substantive grounds for alleging that the water and sewer/wastewater service rates set forth in this resolution do not comply with any applicable legal requirements including Proposition 218; and WHEREAS, the City Council held the public hearing on the proposed rates on January 13, 2026, and the Council heard and considered all oral and written testimony and protests presented in accordance with all applicable legal requirements including Proposition 218; and WHEREAS, from the total number of 12,194 parcels served by City water and the total number of 28,725 parcels served by City sewer/wastewater, there was no timely written protest received by the time of the close of the public hearing. A tally of the written protests against the proposed schedule of water and sewer/wastewater rates shows that less than a majority of the property owners have submitted written protests against the proposed water rates and less than a majority of the property owners have submitted written protests against the proposed sewer/wastewater rates; and WHEREAS, based on the evidence described in this resolution and as presented in the record of the public hearing (in accordance with Government Code Section 53759.2), the Council finds that the water and sewer/wastewater rates set forth in this resolution are justified based on the cost of providing the service, do not exceed the proportional cost of providing service to each parcel, and otherwise comply with Proposition 218 and applicable law.
WHEREAS, the rate study and Proposition 218 notice established the maximum allowable water and wastewater rates; and WHEREAS, based on updated financial information and Council direction, the City identified $8.65 million in available funding from the RUA Trust Excluded Account—consisting primarily of FY 2023/24 and FY 2024/25 lease payments—that were not previously incorporated into initial rate-setting assumptions; and WHEREAS, this $8.65 million in Excluded Account funding has been allocated as follows to offset operating and capital expenses, reduce reliance on rate revenue, and stabilize rates: $1.73 million to water (20%) and $6.92 million to wastewater (80%); and WHEREAS, based on updated assumptions in the Water Capital Improvement Plan (CIP), several projects have been rescheduled or assumed to be fully or partially grant funded; and WHEREAS, although no changes were made to the Wastewater CIP, the additional $6.92 million cash allocation will support prior wastewater lease payments and biosolids improvements while maintaining all planned investments.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF RIALTO AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1: The foregoing recitals are true and correct and incorporated herein by this reference.
Section 2: Effective March 1, 2026, the City Council hereby approves the Water Rates and Sewer/Wastewater Rates for properties served by the City of Rialto in the amounts as set forth in the attached Exhibit A (Water Rates) and Exhibit B (Sewer/Wastewater Rates), which are incorporated herein by reference. The rates in effect on March 1, 2026, shall be those set forth in each column labeled “Effective 3/1/2026.” Thereafter, the water rates and sewer/wastewater rates shall be subject to annual adjustments each January 1, between January 1, 2027 and January 1, 2030 (for the rates set forth in the corresponding columns labeled “Effective 1/1/2027” through “Effective 1/1/2030”), subject to a 30-day prior written notice for each annual adjustment mailed to customers in accordance with Government Code Section 53756(d).
Section 3: The City Clerk shall certify to the adoption of this resolution.
Section 4: The City Council hereby authorizes the transfer of $8.65 million from the RUA Trust Excluded Account into the designated Water and Wastewater enterprise accounts, allocated as follows: $1.73 million to the Water Fund (20%) and $6.92 million to the Wastewater Fund (80%). These funds shall be used to offset operating and capital expenditures and reduce reliance on rate revenues as incorporated into the financial assumptions of this rate resolution.
Section 5: This resolution shall take effect immediately upon its adoption.
PASSED, APPROVED AND ADOPTED this 13th day of January 2026.
JOE BACA, Mayor
ATTEST:
BARBARA A. McGEE, City Clerk
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
ERIC S. VAIL, City Attorney
STATE OF CALIFORNIA )
COUNTY OF SAN BERNARDINO ) ss
CITY OF RIALTO )
I, Barbara A. McGee, City Clerk of the City of Rialto, do hereby certify that the foregoing Resolution No. ____ was duly passed and adopted at a regular meeting of the City Council of the City of Rialto held on the 27th day of January 2026.
Upon motion of Councilmember____________, seconded by Councilmember _______________, the foregoing Resolution No. ____ was duly passed and adopted.
Vote on the motion:
AYES:
NOES:
ABSENT:
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand and the Official Seal of the City of Rialto this 27th day of January, 2026.
BARBARA A. MCGEE, City Clerk
Water Rates
(Exhibit “A”)
Sewer/Wastewater Rates
(Exhibit “B”)
Extraterritorial (outside the borders of the City of Rialto) sewer fees have been established at one point three (1.3) times the current sewage charges per Resolution No. 6209 adopted January 8, 2013. -4-
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