C
ITY OF SIMI VALLEY
MEMORANDUM
J
une 23, 2025
T
O: City Council
F
ROM: Department of Public Works
S
UBJECT: ADOPTION OF A RESOLUTION IMPLEMENTING A SCHEDULE OF
SANITATION SERVICE RATES AND FEES , AS AUTHORIZED AND
APPROVED BY ORDINANCE NO. 1363, AND AUTHORIZING THE
COUNTY OF VENTURA TO COLLECT RESIDENTIAL SANITATION
SERVICE RATES ON THE TAX ROLL FOR FISCAL YEAR 2025-26
STAFF RECOMMENDATION
I
t is recommended that the City Council adopt R esolution No. 2025- 19 (page 4) implementing a Schedule of Sanitation Service Rates and Fees , as authorized and approved by Ordinance No. 1363, and authorizing the County of Ventura to collect residential sanitation service rates on the tax roll for Fiscal Year (FY) 2025-26.
BACKGROUND AND OVERVIEW
On
May 5, 2025, the City Council conducted a P ublic Hearing to consider t he protest ballots and testimony following the Proposition 218 (Prop 218) notice to increase sanitation service rates and fees for five years for FY 2025-26 through FY 2029-30. The City Council adopted Ordinance No. 1363 on May 19, 2025, approving the rates and authorizing the scheduled annual increases to be implemented by resolution of the City Council.
The City previously commissioned the Ventura County Auditor-Controller to collect residential sanitation service charges on property tax bills to save expenses. The tax roll collection is allowed , provided the City Council approves an authorizing ordinance or resolution by a two- thirds vote (at least four affirmative votes) annually. An affirmative vote of three Council M embers would implement the service charges but would not authorize their collection on the tax roll.
FINDINGS AND ALTERNATIVES
T
he adopted five-year rate increase is needed to fund infrastructure rehabilitation projects to maintain facilities and to ensure reliability of wastewater treatment and the collection system.
AGENDA ITEM NO.
Consent (9)
Impact on Single-Family Rates
The adopted rate for single-family residential sewer service for the current FY 2024-25 is $55.85 per month. Ordinance No. 1363 approved the rate for FY 2025-26 of $56.73 per month. Rates for all other customers for FY 2025-26 are outlined in Exhibit A, page 6 of the proposed resolution.
T
he following provides a comparison of the current and approved sanitation service rates for single-family residences in Simi Valley to be implemented, compared to neighboring communities:
Single Family Residential Rate Calculations based on 10 HCF; Rate for 2025 Single Family Residence (1) Fixed Rate
(2) Variable Rate based upon water usage
Tax Roll Billing
Historically, the City utilizes the Ventura County Auditor -Controller to collect residential sanitation service charges on property tax bills to save expenses. Staff recommends continuing this relationship as the cost for the City to implement a collection system would significantly increase costs including additional personnel and software. In order to authorize this continued practice, staff recom mends the City Council adopt Resolution No. 2025-19 by a two-thirds vote (four affirmative votes).
City/District Monthly Sewer Service
Rate
City of Moorpark(1) $ 29.00
City of Port Hueneme(1) $ 36.00
City of Thousand Oaks(1) $ 39.17
City of Simi Valley, Current(1)
55.85$
City of Simi Valley, Proposed(1)
56.73$
City of Oxnard(2) $ 59.56
Ojai Valley Sanitary District(1) $ 61.67
City of Ventura(2) $ 63.54
City of Santa Barbara(2) $ 69.05
City of Camarillo(1) $ 74.30
City of Los Angeles(2) $ 75.60
Las Virgenes MWD(2) $ 100.95
City of Fillmore(1) $ 103.36
City of Santa Paula(2) $ 111.72
Triunfo Co. San. District (Oak Park)(1) $ 112.25
2 The following alternatives are available to the City Council:
1. A
dopt Res olution No. 2025- 19 implementing a Schedule of Sanitation Service Rates and Fees , as authorized and approved by Ordinance No. 1363, and authorizing the County of Ventura to collect residential sanitation service rates on the tax roll for Fiscal Year 2025-26.
2 . P rovide staff with other direction.
S
taff recommends Alternative No. 1.
SUGGESTED CITY COUNCIL MOTION
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move to adopt Resolution No. 2025-19 implementing a Schedule of Sanitation Service Rates and Fees , as authorized and approved by Ordinance No. 1363, and authorizing the County of Ventura to collect residential sanitation service rates on the tax roll for Fiscal Year 2025-26.
SUMMARY
On
May 5, 2025, the City Council conducted a public hearing to approve sanitation service rates and fees for FY 2025-26 through FY 2029-30. The City Council approved the rate increase and ultimately adopted Ordinance No. 1363 on May 19, 2025, setting the five - year sewer fee schedule and authorizing the scheduled annual increases to be implemented by City Council r esolution. The Ci ty has previously commissioned the Ventura County Auditor -Controller to collect residential sanitation service charges on property tax bills to save expenses.
S
taff recommends the City Council adopt R esolution No. 2025 -19 implementing the Schedule of Sanitation Service Rates and Fees , as authorized and approved by Ordinance No. 1363, and authorizing the County of Ventura to collect residential sanitation service on the tax roll for FY 2025-26.
R onald K. Fuchiwaki
Public Works Director
P
repared by: John Hamilton, Principal Engineer
INDEX Page
R
esolution No. 2025-19 .......................................................................... 4 Exhibit A – Schedule of Sanitation Service Rates and Fees .................. 6 3 R
ESOLUTION NO. 2025-19
A
RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF
SIMI VALLEY IMPLEMENTING A SCHEDULE OF
SANITATION RATES AND FEES AND AUTHORIZING THE
COUNTY OF VENTURA TO COLLECT RESIDENTIAL
SANITATION SERVICE RATES ON THE TAX ROLL FOR
FISCAL YEAR 2025-26
W
HEREAS, on May 19, 2025, the City Council of the City of Simi Valley adopted Ordinance No. 1363, establishing sanitation (sewer) service rates and fees for Fiscal Years 2025-26 through 2029- 2030 pursuant to Section 5471 of the California Health and Safety Code; and
W
HEREAS, California Health and Safety Code Section 5473 provides that the City of Simi Valley may utilize the County tax roll to collect sanitation (sewer) service rates; and
W
HEREAS, the County of Ventura requires the City of Simi Valley defend, indemnify, and hold harmless the County of Ventura from any challenge in applying California Health and Safety Code Section 5473.
NO
W, THEREFORE, THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SIMI VALLEY DOES HEREBY RESOLVE AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. The Sanitation Rates and Fees shown in Exhibit “A ” are implemented effective July 1, 2025, and will be coordinated with regular billings following the effective date as soon as administratively possible.
SECTION 2. The collection of Sanitation (Sewer) Service Rates specified herein to residences shall be made on the FY 2025-26 assessor's tax roll for the County of Ventura pursuant to the provisions of Health and Safety Code Section 5473, et seq.
SECTION 3. The City of Simi Valley shall defend, indemnify, and hold harmless the County of Ventura and the County of Ventura Auditor -Controller from any action arising from the City of Simi Valley's utilization of the procedure established in Health and Safety Code Section 5473 to collect Sanitation (Sewer) Service Rates.
SECTION 4. T he City Manager is hereby authorized to enter into all necessary agreements with entities necessary to effectuate this Resolution.
SECTION 5. The City of Simi Valley shall file a written report with the City Clerk describing each parcel of real property receiving sanitation services and facilities and the amount charged to each parcel for the year, computed in conformity with the charges prescribed by Ordinance No. 1363.
4 SECTION 6. The City Clerk shall certify to the adoption of this resolution and shall cause a certified resolution to be filed in the Office of the City Clerk.
PASSED
and ADOPTED this 23rd day of June, 2025.
A
ttest:
Lucy Blanco, City Clerk Dee Dee Cavanaugh, Mayor of the City of Simi Valley, California
A
pproved as to Form: Approved as to Content:
Algeria R. Ford, City Attorney Samantha C. Argabrite, City Manager Ronald K. Fuchiwaki
Public Works Director
5 RES. NO. 2025-19
E
XHIBIT A
SCHEDULE OF SANITATION SERVICE RATES AND FEES AS OF JULY 1, 2025 Monthly Residential ($/month)
Single Family $56.73
Multi Family $42.54
Senior Housing $31.20
Mobile Home $34.04
Monthly Non-Residential ($/month)1
Office with LM (SCD) $56.54
Office without LM (SDL) $45.23
Commercial with LM (SCR) $68.44
Commercial without LM (SRL) $54.76
Restaurant with LM (SRR) $80.35
Restaurant without LM (RRL) $64.28
Café with LM (SRD) $80.35
Café without LM (RDL) $64.28
Commercial Units (SCU) $63.01
Park Landscape with Restroom (SPL) $63.01
Special SAP Conversion (SRS) $63.01
1 Non-residential fixed monthly rates include a billed sewage allowance of 7 hundred cubic feet (hcf).
Other Non-Residential ($/Unit/month)
High Schools ($/Student) $2.44
Other Schools ($/Student) $1.63
Septage Hauling ($/750 Gal Load) $49.07
Monthly Lift Station Charge (In Addition to Normal Rates)2 Wood Ranch/Big Sky SFR Lift Fee $10.45
Multi Family Lift Fee $7.84
2 For customers that benefit from the City's sewer lift stations.
Non-Residential Usage Rates ($/hundred cubic feet)
Office with LM3 (SCD) $8.08
Office without LM (SDL) $6.46
Commercial with LM (SCR) $9.78
Commercial without LM (SRL) $7.82
Restaurant with LM (SRR) $11.48
Restaurant without LM (RRL) $9.18
Café with LM (SRD) $11.48
Café without LM (RDL) $9.18
Commercial Units (SCU) $9.00
Note: One hundred cubic feet equals approximately 748 gallons.
Abbreviations: LM = Landscape Meter
3 The City has two type of non-residential customers: 1) with a landscape meter and 2) without a landscape meter. With landscape meter represents customers that have separate irrigation meter and therefore billable sewage flow is assumed 100% of water consumption. Without landscape meter represents customers that don’t have a separate irrigation meter and therefore billable sewage flow is assumed to be 80% of water consumption.
6 RES. NO. 2025-19
High Strength Nonresidential Users
H
igh strength non-residential users:
I
ndustrial, commercial and/or institutional users with a discharge having a BOD greater than 266 parts per million and for a TSS greater than 331 parts per million will be charged using the following formula for each 100 cubic feet or fraction thereof:
$7.02 (0.83 + 0.08 BOD + 0.08 TSS) = monthly fee
266 331
W
here:
B
OD = Biochemical oxygen demand loading in mg/L (ppm) for extra strength discharger SS =
Suspended solids loading in mg/L (ppm) for extra strength discharger Service Rate Provisions for Nonresidential Users
i) S
ervice fees shall be due from the owner of the property served, but may be billed to and paid by commercial and industrial lessees where the City's Engineer is able to determine a fee for each separate user within a parcel.
Service fees shall be due at the beginning of each month and delinquent if not paid within 30 days.
ii) T
he monthly charges for commercial, industrial, and institutional users will be based on the total sewered water usage. A standard allowance of 20 percent will be granted where a portion of the metered water usage is employed for landscape irrigation for consumptive purposes.
iii) B
ecause of the higher than average landscape irrigation or consumptive usage, some non -residential users may only be discharging a comparatively small portion of their metered water usage to the sewer system. These users may, upon request to the City, be permitted to have the amount of water being discharged to the sewer determined by one of the methods listed below. The specific method to be used will be selected by the City based on consideration of cost of installation and anticipated accuracy of the method. There shall be a $319.53 fee required for any such request to cover the costs of the City in processing following the City's initial determination.
Method 1. The user will install, at the user's expense, a calibrated flume, weir, flow meter, or similar device approved by the Engineer of the City as to type and location to measure the user's wastewater discharge. In the latter case, a flow meter and totalizing register will be required, and measurement to verify the quantity of wastewater flow will be performed on a random basis by the City. The property owner will install, at owner’s expense, a suitable vault for installing the flow meter. 7 RES. NO. 2025-19
T
he vault will be located on the user's sewer lateral or building sewer at a location approved by the City, and City will have access rights in order to read and maintain the meter.
Method 2. The user will install, at the user's expense, a water meter for submetering the water discharging to the public sewer. The property owner will, at his/her expense, do any necessary plumbing subject to City inspection to separate the types of water use and provide for the meter to be accessible to the City for maintenance and inspection purposes.
Method 3. If the City determines that it is impractical for a user to employ Method 1 or 2 as a result of physical difficulty or excessive cost, it may permit the user to estimate the amount of wastewater reasonably anticipated to be discharged to the public sewer.
User's estimate may be based upon average historical water use during the months of December, January, and February, or upon any other reasonable basis, and may be based upon flow meter tests if practical. The City will review the data submitt ed by the user and may modify the user's estimate, where appropriate. The decision of the City shall be final if Method 3 is utilized. If a user is not satisfied with the determination under Method 3, user shall have the right to require, at user’s expense, utilization of Method 1 or 2 for determination of the amount of wastewater discharge to the public sewer.
M
easurement of strengths of BOD and SS in wastewater is the responsibility of the user, and such measurements shall be made from time to time to establish strengths to be used in the above formula. Such measurements need to be made only by those users who are known or believed to be discharging wastewater of greater than base strength.
Measurements shall be reviewed annually or at the request of user or at the option of the City's Engineer, more frequently if there is reason to believe that there has been significant change in the strength.
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andom sampling of industrial wastes will also be performed by the City's Engineer pursuant to the monitoring and enforcement provisions of the Environmental Compliance Pretreatment Program.
8 RES. NO. 2025-19