Item Number: 10
City Council / Board of Directors
Consent Calendar
Meeting of: September 1, 2026
Submitted By:
Asdghik Keyvanian, Finance Director / City Treasurer
Subject:
Adoption of Resolution No. VWD 26-013 - Annual Assessments for Unpaid Water Fees, Replacing and Superseding Resolution No. VWD 26-010 to account for new provisions required by the County to process tax roll collections
Recommendation:
That the Honorable Victorville Water District Board of Directors Adopt Resolution No.
VWD 26-013 entitled, “A Resolution of the Board of Directors of the Victorville Water District, Replacing and Superseding Resolution No. VWD 26-010 for the Purpose of Adding Delinquent Non-Paid Charges to the Annual Taxes Levied upon the Property for which the Charges are Delinquent and Unpaid.”
Fiscal Impact:
There is no fiscal impact associated with this agenda item. Proposed replacement Resolution Number VWD 26-013 will allow delinquent balances to be collected for Fiscal Year 2026-2027, assessed by the County Assessor; assessments to be submitted for an estimated total of $768,823.50.
Strategic Plan Goal:
This item aligns with Goal A. Financial Sustainability - foster fiscal health through disciplined long-term planning, cost control, increased revenues, and cost recovery. By adding the non-paid charges to the taxes levied upon the property, the Victorville Water District is able to collect expected revenues and help maintain water rates as low as possible.
Background:
Annually, the Victorville Water District (Water District) conducts proceedings to identify and place liens on properties with delinquent water and other service charges for the District. This annual process is conducted pursuant to Victorville Municipal Code (VMC) Section 10.04.060 and California Water Code Sections 31701(e), 31701.5, and 31701.6. 4 8
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The process provides the Water District with a mechanism to recover charges that remain unpaid and delinquent for more than sixty days. As part of the process, Water District staff submits the applicable charges and a confirming resolution (adopted by the Water District Board of Directors following the holding of a duly noticed public hearing) to the San Bernardino County Auditor-Controller/Treasurer/Tax Collector (County ATC) for placement on the annual property tax roll by the County ATC’s August submission deadline.
During its July 21, 2026, regular meeting, the Victorville Water District Board of Directors (District Board) considered an agenda item to transfer delinquent and unpaid water service charges to the property tax roll. As part of these lien proceedings, letters regarding the date, time, and place of the public hearing were mailed to all affected parcel owners, advising them how to remedy their delinquent balances. The Notice of Public Hearing was also published twice in the newspaper. The District Board approved the item, and the corresponding Resolution No. VWD 26-010 was formally adopted.
Following adoption, Resolution No. VWD 26-010 was submitted to the County ATC for processing through its new electronic processing system. Unexpectedly, the County ATC rejected the resolution because it did not include language specifically authorizing the inclusion of any applicable County administrative or processing fees associated with placing the delinquent charges on the annual tax roll in the amount to be levied and collected. Although these fees, which are in addition to the delinquent charges owed to the Water District, have in the past been automatically included by the County on the tax roll, the additional language has not been required or identified as an issue in prior years’ proceedings. The failure to include the requested language was identified as an issue for other municipalities and special districts this year as well.
As a one-time accommodation for Fiscal Year 2026-2027, the County ATC has advised that corrected resolutions, approved by the respective governing bodies and meeting all applicable requirements, may be submitted through September 15, 2026. Accordingly, the item is being resubmitted to the District Board under a new (Replacement) Resolution No. VWD 26-013 for consideration of the additional language requested by the County.
Discussion:
Replacement Resolution No. VWD 26-013 is being submitted to address the County ATC’s new requirements and allow the delinquent charges to be properly placed on the annual property tax roll for collection. The delinquent amounts and parcels to which they are to be charged remain unchanged from those adopted on July 21, 2026, with only the additional language requested by the County being added to Section 4. However, new recitals describing the need for the new resolution and the supersession of the prior resolution were also included, together with certain minor corrections and other clarifying and conforming changes.
Exhibit “A” to Resolution No. VWD 26-013 contains a listing of the parcels, property owners, and amounts of fees delinquent sixty days or more for water and other District service charges. This listing is the same one that was previously attached as Exhibit “A” 4 8
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to Resolution No. VWD 26-010 and confirmed by the District Board’s adoption thereof after the July 21, 2026 public hearing. The adoption of the aforementioned resolution authorized placement of the delinquent amounts in the listing on the County tax roll as liens minus any payments received within five (5) working days following the date of the public hearing and including any additional late charges that have accrued to be collected in the same manner as property taxes.
Senate Bill 998 (SB 998), the Water Shutoff Protection Act, established requirements governing the discontinuation of residential water service for nonpayment, including written notice procedures and protections for eligible residential customers experiencing financial hardship or qualifying medical conditions. Senate Bill 3 (SB 3) expanded these protections by requiring water agencies to adopt formal policies that provide deferred payment and alternative payment options for customers with delinquent accounts without requiring documentation of a qualifying medical condition or proof of income.
Due to Senate Bill 3 (SB 3), the Victorville Water District (VWD) temporarily suspended residential water service disconnections until the required policy could be implemented.
As a result, delinquent accounts that would have otherwise been resolved through the shutoff process continued to accumulate and instead proceeded through the lien process.
Consequently, the number of accounts eligible for lien placement increased significantly, resulting in the issuance of 4,157 mailed notices this year, compared to an average of approximately 500 mailed notices in prior years.
Staff recommends that the Board of Directors adopt attached replacement Resolution No.
VWD 26-013, which includes the additional language requested by the County authorizing the total amount of the charges in Exhibit “A” thereto, including any applicable County administrative or processing fees, to be placed on the annual property tax roll. Resolution No. VWD 26-013 will supersede and replace Resolution No. VWD 26-010.
Staff remains available for any questions the District Board may have.
Prepared By:
Alex M. Garcia, Finance Analyst
Attachments: A. Resolution No. VWD 26-013