City Council Memorandum
TO: HONORABLE MAYO R AND CITY COUNCIL DATE: DECEMBER 19, 2023
FROM: PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT WARDS: ALL
SUBJECT: CONSIDERATION OF POTENT IAL SOLID WASTE SHARE PROGRAM –
SUPPLEMENTAL APPROPRIATION AND INTERFUND TRANSFER
ISSUE:
Consider approval of a potential Solid Waste Sharing Househo lds Assist Riverside’s Energy (SHARE) program.
RECOMMENDATIONS:
That the City Council:
1. Approve the establishment of a SHARE program to assist qualifying City of Riverside Solid Waste customers;
2. Authorize the SHARE progr am to be in effect as of November 1, 2023; and
3. With at least five affirmative votes, author ize the Chief Financial Officer, or designee, to record a supplemental appropriation and interfund transfer in the amount of $83,100 from the General Fund to the Refuse Fund for th e purpose of funding the fiscal year 2023/24 cost of the SHARE program.
COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION:
The Inclusiveness, Community Engagement and Governmental Processes Committee met on November 1, with Chair Cervantes and Vice Chai r Perry present and Member Conder absent.
After discussion, the Committee members present voted unanimously to recommend that the City Council approve the establishment of a SHARE program to assi st qualifying City of Riverside Solid Waste customers.
BACKGROUND:
On June 27, 2023, the City Council set a public hearing regarding a Solid Waste rate proposal for September 19, 2023.
During this discussion, the City Council requested that staff review options Potential Solid Waste SHARE Program ● Page 2
to develop and implement a low-income assistanc e program to aid qualifying residential Solid Waste customers.
On September 6, 2023, the Inclusiveness, Community Engagement and Governmental Processes Committee received a preliminary repo rt regarding the establishment of a credit program to assist qualifying City of Riverside Solid Waste customers and requested that staff return with a report which included final reco mmendations regarding the funding source for such a program.
On September 19, 2023, the City Council conducted the planned public hearing and adopted the proposed Solid Waste rates alongside additiona l recommendations. During the hearing, staff confirmed that the item regarding a proposed SHARE program would return to Committee for consideration in 2023.
The Public Works Department continues to recommend the im plementation of a financial assistance program like that offered by Riverside Public Utilities (RPU). RPU assists qualified low- income residential electric and water customer s with their utility b ills through the Sharing Households Assist Riverside’s Energy (SHARE) program which RPU administers along with the Riverside County Community Action Partnership. The Public Works Department has developed cost estimates for a proposed Solid Waste SHARE program to assist qualifying low-income residents.
Residents can learn more about RPU’s existing SHARE program by visiting:
RiversidePublicUtilities.com/Assistance or calling the 311 Call Center.
DISCUSSION:
The City of Riverside Public Works Department is administering a five-year solid waste rate plan which includes an average $2.50 m onthly increase per residential home for the five-year plan term. By adopting the SHARE program, the departm ent aims to minimize the rate impact on qualifying low-income residential Solid Waste customers.
The Solid Waste division currently provides an extensive array of benefits to Riverside residents, including:
Disabled resident pickup assistance
Free “bulky item” pickup services
Clean Up Riverside waste collection events
Support for Beautify Riverside, Festival of Lights, and Keep Riverside Clean and Beautiful
The adopted five-year rate plan will address the impac ts of inflation and State regulation on Riverside’s solid waste operations. Inflation and the rising cost of consumer goods has similarly impacted Riverside households, and the establishment of a SH ARE program for solid waste customers would help to absorb a portion of the proposed rate increases for qualifying low-income residential Solid Waste customers.
The RPU SHARE program was established in 1989. Income qualification for the SHARE program is currently based on 250% of the federal poverty income guideline and the number of people in the household. Public Works proposes to utilize the same income qualification criteria as RPU.
Potential Solid Waste SHARE Program ● Page 3
RPU Water customers currently receive a mont hly SHARE credit of $3.25, this amount is proposed to gradually increase as part of the separate RPU Water five-year rate plan. The SHARE credit amount is not set at a fixed percentage of water rates, but rather has evolved over the years in response to rate increases. For comparative purposes, Public Works staff have found that the current RPU Water SHARE credit corresponds to approximately 5.6% of the average residential monthly bill calculated at 21 CCF per month.
The Public Utilities customer se rvice team estimates that approx imately 3,679 existing SHARE customers have solid waste service. Using the current credit to average monthly bill ratio for RPU Water SHARE customers, a suggested starting so lid waste SHARE credit can be calculated to correspond with the proposed November 2023 total monthly bill:
5.6% ∗ $34.72 ሺ𝑇𝑜𝑡𝑎𝑙 𝑃𝑟𝑜𝑝𝑜𝑠𝑒𝑑 𝑀𝑜𝑛𝑡ℎ𝑙𝑦 𝐵𝑖𝑙𝑙ሻ ൌ $1.94 𝑆𝑜𝑙𝑖𝑑 𝑊𝑎𝑠𝑡𝑒 𝐵𝑎𝑠𝑒 𝑆𝐻𝐴𝑅𝐸 𝐶𝑟𝑒𝑑𝑖𝑡
For the remainder of the proposed 5-year rate program, the incremental increases in solid waste SHARE credit were calculated as 50% of the proposed rate increase. For example:
$1.94 ሺ𝐹𝑌 23 24⁄ 𝑆𝐻𝐴𝑅𝐸 𝐶𝑟𝑒𝑑𝑖𝑡ሻ $2.60 ሺ𝐹𝑌 24 25 𝑃𝑟𝑜𝑝𝑜𝑠𝑒𝑑⁄ 𝑅𝑎𝑡𝑒 𝐼𝑛𝑐𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑠𝑒ሻ 2 ൌ $3.25 𝐹𝑌 24/25 𝑆𝐻𝐴𝑅𝐸 𝐶𝑟𝑒𝑑𝑖𝑡
While the application of the SHAR E credit to solid waste customers can be largely automated, staff anticipates that there may be approximately $25,000 per year in administrative and marketing costs.
Using these figures, Public Works has assembled a proposed monthly solid waste SHARE credit program to coincide with implementation of the proposed 5-year rate plan, shown in Table 1.
Table 1: Proposed Monthly Solid Waste SHARE Credit
Table 2 explores in additional detail the cumula tive costs experienced by qualifying customers under the proposed SHARE program and 5-year rate increase.
Table 2: Anticipated costs for solid waste SHARE customers through FY 27/28 Date
Proposed
Monthly Rate
Increase
Cumulative
Rate Increase
Proposed
Monthly SHARE
Credit
Cumulative Cost
Increase for
SHARE
Customers
November 2023 $0.94 $0.94 $1.94 -$1.00
July 2024 $2.60 $3.54 $3.24 $0.30
July 2025 $2.43 $5.97 $4.46 $1.51
July 2026 $2.58 $8.55 $5.75 $2.80
July 2027 $2.75 $11.30 $7.12 $4.18
Date Proposed Rate
Increase
Total Monthly
Bill
Proposed Monthly
SHARE Credit
Net Monthly Cost for
SHARE Customers
Total Cost of Solid Waste
SHARE Program
Current ‐ $33.78 ‐‐ ‐
November 2023 $0.94 $34.72 $1.94 $32.78 $83,100 FY 23/24 July 2024 $2.60 $37.32 $3.24 $34.08 $170,011 FY 24/25 July 2025 $2.43 $39.75 $4.46 $35.29 $224,588 FY 25/26 July 2026 $2.58 $42.33 $5.75 $36.58 $282,509 FY 26/27 July 2027 $2.75 $45.08 $7.12 $37.96 $344,217 FY 27/28 Potential Solid Waste SHARE Program ● Page 4
To highlight the added benefit of a Solid Waste SHARE program, the Inclusiveness, Community Engagement and Governmental Processes Committee requested a holistic view of RPU’s existing Water and Electric SHARE programs together with the proposed Solid Waste program. The following Table 3 provides this overview.
Table 3: Monthly SHARE Program Credit Amounts Over Next Five-Years Year 1 Year 2 Year 3 Year 4 Year 5
Solid Waste $1.94 $3.24 $4.46 $5.75 $7.12
Water $4.25 $4.75 $5.25 $5.75 $6.25
Electric $20.00 $24.00 $26.00 $28.00 $30.00
Total $26.19 $31.99 $35.71 $39.50 $43.37
If the program is approved, staff will return to Council on an annual basis to review the program.
Discussions of program funding options beyond the initial five-years will be included as part of the program review.
STRATEGIC PLAN ALIGNMENT:
Staff’s recommendation contributes to Strategic Priority 3 - Economic Opportunity, by championing a thriving, enduring economy that provides opportunities for all.
The program would also align with each of the five Cross Cutting Threads as discussed below:
1. Community Trust – The Public Works Department is responsive to community requests, and the proposed SHARE program is a result of feedback received both by the City Council and community members during recent neighborhood meetings.
2. Equity – By advancing a credit program for qualifying low-income customers, the City can minimize the impact of the proposed 5-year solid waste rate program to residents in need of financial assistance.
3. Fiscal Responsibility – The proposed program balances impacts to the City while offering an equitable solution for qualifying low-income customers.
4. Innovation – The proposed solid waste SHARE pr ogram would leverage existing programs to minimize operating costs of the new program.
5. Sustainability and Resiliency – The proposed solid waste rates will help the City to meet compliance standards related to the reducti on of greenhouse gases and adoption of zero emission vehicles.
FISCAL IMPACT:
The total estimated fiscal impact of implement ing a solid waste SHARE program through Fiscal Year 2027/28 to coincide with the proposed 5-year rate plan is estimated as $1,104,425. If Council approves of the program, a suppl emental appropriation and interf und transfer in the amount of $83,100 from the General Fund to the Refuse Fund will be recorded to fund the fiscal year 2023/24 cost of the SHARE progr am. Appropriations for future fisca l years will be included in the Department’s Budget submissions for those fiscal years to be pr esented to the City Council for Potential Solid Waste SHARE Program ● Page 5
approval. The source of funding for the general fund fiscal support of this program will be currently unallocated American Rescue Plan Act interest in come of approximately $1.1 million. There is sufficient unallocated interest income from ARPA funds that will be allocated to revenue replacement and used to support this program.
Prepared by: Lee Withers, D eputy Public Works Director Approved by: Gilbert Hernandez, Public Works Director
Certified as to
availability of funds: Kristie Thomas, Fi nance Director/Assistant Chief Financial Officer Approved by: Kris Martinez, Assistant City Manager
Approved as to form: Phaedr a A. Norton, City Attorney
Concurs with;
__________________________
Jim Perry, Vice Chair
Inclusiveness, Community Engagement and Governmental Processes Committee
Attachment: Presentation