Ripon City Council
Special Meeting Minutes
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2022
SPECIAL MEETING
2:30 PM
The Special Meeting was called to order by Mayor Dean Uecker at 2:30 PM.
ROLL CALL:
Attendee Name Title Status Arrived
Dean Uecker Mayor Present
Michael Restuccia Vice Mayor Present
Leo Zuber Council Member Present
Daniel de Graaf Council Member Present
Gary Barton Council Member Remote
OTHERS PRESENT:
City Administrator Kevin Werner, City Attorney Tom Terpstra, City Clerk Lisa Roos, Deputy City Clerk Jane Kilgore, Information Systems Technician Dennis Aquino.
1. PUBLIC DISCUSSION
No one form the public wished to speak at this time.
2. ORDINANCE
First Reading and Adoption
A. ORDINANCE NO. 913
AN URGENCY ORDINANCE OF THE
CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF
RIPON AMENDING SECTIONS OF
CHAPTER 13.04 “WATER SERVICE
SYSTEM” TO THE RIPON MUNICIPAL
CODE
This Urgency Ordinance amends Chapter
13.04 “Water Service System” section
13.04.230 to adjust the delinquent fee due
to the COVID-19 pandemic and the State
of California moratorium on water
shutoffs. Delinquent fees will be 10% for
the first two months and 2% thereafter until
the City resume its normal shutoff process.
City Clerk Roos said this is an Urgency Ordinance that follows up on the discussion from the February 8, 2022 City Council meeting regarding delinquent fees to our customers. Before the Council today is a redline version of the Urgency Ordinance up for first reading and adoption. Roos said there are two redline versions giving two different examples. The first example is for the delinquent fees to be adjusted to 2 percent from May 2020, which is two months into the beginning of the moratorium, the second example would have each account City Council Page 2 February 10, 2022
treated individually and for the first two months that there were late fees, they would incur a 10 percent fee and then 2 percent for anymore through March of 2022.
Roos said there were two different interpretations so there are two options.
Council Member Zuber said the general agreement was that the fees would be reduced from 10 percent to 2 percent, but the question is when that happens. Based on what Roos wrote, a customer who stopped paying their bill on March of 2020 would be charged 10 percent for March and April and 2 percent for any subsequent months, however if a customer stopped paying their bill in July of 2020, they would only pay 2 percent. Zuber said his suggestion is that the 10 percent is paid for the first two months, regardless of when the delinquency started and then 2 percent after that.
Council all agreed that had been their intention.
Vice Mayor Restuccia said he was glad Zuber had clarified this.
Council Member de Graaf asked if there were any accounts that were delinquent before March 2020. Roos said there are a few accounts that have not made a payment since January of 2020 and so their water would have been shut off in March of 2020 but we were unable to do so.
Council questioned whether this person would pay 10 percent for January through April.
Zuber said he would prefer to keep it simple and they pay 10 percent for January through April and then 2 percent starting in May.
City Administrator Werner said this is the second option presented to Council.
Council Member de Graaf questioned if there is anyone pre-COVID who had more than 2 months of late fees.
Werner said no, that is why the City’s system works. A customer cannot incur more than 2 months of late fees because the water is shut off until their balance is paid in full.
Roos said she would like to clarify that the 2 times someone is charged 10 percent is not necessarily consecutive.
Council Member Barton asked Roos to clarify what non-consecutively would mean. Roos explained that if someone missed a payment in June, paid in July and then missed a December payment, paid in January and then missed another payment in March, paid in April, that person would pay the 10 percent late fee for the first two times they were late in June and December but would pay 2 percent for the March late fee.
Council discussed the different ways this might happen. de Graaf said the only people who should receive the 2 percent relief are the people who are currently delinquent, not people who have paid and are current. Werner said the Ordinance City Council Page 3 February 10, 2022
goes back the March of 2020 and the plan was to go back and credit active account holders.
Council agreed.
Motion to waive the first reading and adopt Urgency Ordinance 913 amending sections of Chapter 13.04 “Water Service System” to the Ripon Municipal Code.
RESULT: FIRST READING ADOPTED [UNANIMOUS]
MOVER: Leo Zuber, Council Member
SECONDER: Michael Restuccia, Vice Mayor
AYES: Uecker, Restuccia, Zuber, de Graaf, Barton
3. ADJOURNMENT
There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 2:52 PM. (Signed) Dean Uecker
Mayor
ATTEST:
(Signed) Lisa Roos
City Clerk