July 7, 2026
Public Works
DATE: July 7, 2026
TO: Mayor Martinez and Members of the City Council
FROM:
Daniel Chavarria, Director of Public Works
Tawfic Halaby, Deputy Director of Public Works
Subject:
Public Hearing for the Collection of the Sanitary and Storm Fees for Fiscal Year 2026-27
FINANCIAL IMPACT: The Resolution authorizes the collection of approximately $32,750,000 in Wastewater Enterprise revenues and
$1,975,000 in Stormwater Enterprise revenues on the
Fiscal Year 2026-2027 property tax rolls. These revenues fund all expenditures related to the operation and
maintenance of the wastewater and stormwater systems,
including debt service on existing Wastewater Bond
obligations. There is no impact to the General Fund.
PREVIOUS COUNCIL
ACTION:
July 1, 2025
STATEMENT OF THE
ISSUE:
The City provides wastewater and stormwater collection
services which are funded through the collection of
annual fees. City staff is recommending that the City
Council adopt a resolution authorizing the City to collect these annual sanitary and storm sewer fees for Fiscal
Year 2026-27 as a separate line item on the property tax rolls, as has been the practice for several years.
RECOMMENDED ACTION:
HOLD a public hearing to ADOPT a resolution approving
a report of sewer service charges for Fiscal Year 2026-27 allowing for the sanitary and stormwater fees to be
collected on the annual 2026-27 tax rolls – Public Works Department (Tawfic Halaby/Daniel Chavarria 510-620-
5482).
AGENDA
REPORT
July 7, 2026
DISCUSSION:
The City’s wastewater and stormwater collection and treatment services are managed as business enterprises and are separate from the City’s General Fund. The City collects fees to fund these services, which are levied on the property tax rolls.
The proposed resolution has been prepared pursuant to provisions of Chapter 12.20 of the Municipal Code of the City of Richmond, which provides that sanitary and storm sewer service charges may be collected in the same manner, at the same time and together with the general and real property taxes of the City of Richmond.
Article XII, Chapter 12.20 (Sewer System Fees) of the Municipal Code of the City of Richmond provides that staff submit for confirmation a list of premises shown on the tax roll in the County Tax Assessor’s Office, which receive sewer service in the City of Richmond as of the first Monday in March 2026. This report will be posted to the City’s web site and will also be available in the City Clerk’s Office.
Table 1 lists the rates for fiscal year 2026-27. Sanitary sewer and storm sewer rates will remain unchanged for fiscal year 2026-27. The most recent sanitary sewer rate increase was adopted for fiscal year 2024-25, as reflected in the attached ordinance.
Table 1
Single Unit Residential Multi-Unit Residential
$ 1,121/SSU (Sanitary Sewer Rate) $ 964/SSU (Sanitary Sewer Rate) $ 32/SSU (Storm Sewer Rate) $ 32/SSU (Storm Sewer Rate)
Commercial & Industrial (based on flow, but not less than $671/facility) $ 87.00 per IWU (1 IWU = 1,000 cu.ft. wastewater discharged) $ 1.841 per lbs. BOD
$ 0.859 per lbs. TSS
Terms Defined:
SSU – Sanitary Sewer Unit (Single Family Dwelling/Multi-family Dwelling (per unit) IWU – Industrial Waste Unit (1,000 cu. ft. of Industrial Wastewater discharged) BOD – Biochemical Oxygen Demand (strength of pollutant in wastewater discharged measured in mg/L)
TSS – Total Suspended Solids (strength of pollutant in wastewater discharged measured in mg/L)
DOCUMENTS ATTACHED:
Attachment 1 - Resolution
Attachment 2 - Director’s Report
Attachment 3 - Public Hearing Notice (published in local newspapers) Attachment 4 - Ordinance 09-20 N.S. - Richmond Municipal Code Chapter 12.20