City of Yuba City, CA | Wastewater Rate Study
BLACK & VEATCH | Rate Design 5-2
Table 5-1 Proposed Monthly Fixed Charge
The following is the derivation of the fixed charges for FY 2027. ◼ To determine Multi-Family Residential – $67.56/EDU x 0.80 = $54.05/EDU
5.2.2 Consumption Charge
The consumption charge applies to commercial customers. The commercial class is composed of C1, C2, and C3 classifications. The difference between the commercial classification is the strengths associated with each. The strengths are identified in Section 4.3. The higher the strength, the higher the costs of treating wastewater flow therefore the consumption charges are direct reflection of the costs.
Table 5-2 shows the five-year consumption rate schedule for commercial. FYs 2028 to 2031 are derived by applying the revenue adjustment in Table 3-9, Lines 2 to 6 to the previous year’s rate.
Table 5-2 Proposed Consumption Charges
The following is the derivation of the consumption charges for FY 2027.
Fiscal Year Ending June 30,
Customer Class FY 2026 FY 2027 FY 2028 FY 2029 FY 2030 FY 2031 Current
Monthly Fixed Charge ($/month)
Single Family* 65.23 67.28 77.37 82.78 88.58 92.56
Multi Family 52.20 53.82 61.89 66.23 70.86 74.05
Commercial - C1 65.23 67.28 77.37 82.78 88.58 92.56
Commercial - C2 73.40 67.28 77.37 82.78 88.58 92.56
Commercial - C3 88.89 67.28 77.37 82.78 88.58 92.56
School ($/ADA) 29.96 31.31 36.00 38.52 41.22 43.07
*Includes Stonegate customers
Line
No. Description Residential Commercial* Schools
1 Total Allocated Cost (Table 4-8) 15,858,900 361,200
2 Total Units (Table 4-6) 235,729 11,538
3 Unit Cost $ 67.28 $ 67.28 $ 31.31
per /EDU /Bill /ADA
* Commercial bill is equal to one EDU.
Fiscal Year Ending June 30,
Customer Class FY 2026 FY 2027 FY 2028 FY 2029 FY 2030 FY 2031 Current
Consumption Charges ($/HCF)
Commercial (C1,C2,C3) 2.57
Commercial - C1 3.89 4.47 4.78 5.12 5.35
Commercial - C2 4.41 5.07 5.42 5.80 6.07
Commercial - C3 7.04 8.09 8.66 9.26 9.68 Page 437 of 449 City of Yuba City, CA | Wastewater Rate Study
BLACK & VEATCH | Rate Design 5-3
5.2.3 Industrial Charges
The industrial charges are designed to recover the costs associated with O&M and capital for industrial customers. Industrial customers are SIUs, which contribute 25,000 gallons per day or more of process wastewater to the City’s Wastewater Treatment Facility. The City monitors the flow and strength loading contributions of the six SIUs and bills them based on wastewater flow and strength loadings. The industrial charges for FY 2027 represent the unit costs of operating the system as shown in Table 4-7, Line 5. The volume charge was converted from $/HCF to $/MG.
Table 5-3 shows the five-year industrial charges schedule. FYs 2028 to 2031 are derived by applying the revenue adjustment in Table 3-9, Lines 2 to 6 to the previous year’s rate.
Table 5-3 Proposed Industrial Charges
5.2.4 Typical Monthly Costs under Proposed Charges
Table 5-4 compares typical monthly costs under existing rates and the proposed schedule of wastewater user rates derived in this study for residential and commercial customers.
Line Commercial Commercial Commercial
No. Description C1 C2 C3
1 Total Allocated Cost (Table 4-8) 1,635,700 129,000 1,232,500 2 less recovered from Fixed Charge 681,600 46,900 137,600 3 Updated Total Allocated Cost $ 954,100 $ 82,100 $ 1,094,900 4 Total HCF (Table 4-6) 245,442 18,622 155,626
5 Unit Cost $ 3.89 $ 4.41 $ 7.04
Fiscal Year Ending June 30,
Customer Class FY 2026 FY 2027 FY 2028 FY 2029 FY 2030 FY 2031 Current
Industrial Charges
Volume ($/MG) 3,763.63 7,761.06 8,925.22 9,549.98 10,218.48 10,678.31 TSS ($/lbs) 0.290 0.418 0.480 0.514 0.550 0.574
BOD ($/lbs) 0.385 0.428 0.492 0.527 0.564 0.589 Page 438 of 449 City of Yuba City, CA | Wastewater Rate Study
BLACK & VEATCH | Rate Design 5-4
Table 5-4 Typical Monthly Bill
5.3 Benchmarking
Figure 5-1 is the proposed rates compared to rates of neighboring utilities, for a single-family residential customer. Based on the comparison, the City is currently a medium-cost water provider in the area. With the proposed rate increases, the City remains one of the medium-cost wastewater providers of the surveyed utilities. All utility rates surveyed are as of January 2026.
Figure 5-1 Comparison of Neighboring Utilities
FY 2026 FY 2027
Existing Proposed
Customer Class Rates Rates Difference
($/month) ($/month) ($/month)
Monthly Typical Bill
Single Family 65.23 67.28 2.05
Multi Family 52.20 53.82 1.62
Commercial - C1
10 HCF 156.16 173.42 17.26
20 HCF 181.86 212.30 30.44
50 HCF 258.96 328.92 69.96
Commercial - C2
10 HCF 172.50 178.64 6.14
20 HCF 198.20 222.73 24.53
50 HCF 275.30 354.99 79.69
Commercial - C3
10 HCF 203.48 204.91 1.43
20 HCF 229.18 275.26 46.08
50 HCF 306.28 486.32 180.04 Page 439 of 449
City of Yuba City, CA | Wastewater Rate Study
BLACK & VEATCH | Rate Design 5-5
5.4 Summary of Rate Study
This rate study proposes adjustments to the City’s wastewater rates. A summary of actions and projections are as follows:
◼ Maintain the fixed charge for single family and multi-family residential to reflect the nature of fixed costs associated with providing 24/7 wastewater service and investments in infrastructure through the capital improvement program.
◼ Maintain a fixed charge and make it equal to one EDU and adjust the consumption charge for commercial customers to reflect the strength differential in the variable costs. ◼ Maintain the industrial charges for SIUs to reflect the operating costs and incorporate the capital improvement and debt service costs share to match other customer types. ◼ Strive to meet an operating reserve target of 90 days of operating costs. ◼ Strive to meet a capital reserve target minimum level of 25% annual depreciation. ◼ Seek State Revolving Funds for investment in Capital Improvements associated with the Outfall Replacement Project.
◼ Maintain a comparable cost of collecting and treating wastewater flow amongst neighboring wastewater providers.
EXHIBIT 1C
GUIDELINES FOR THE SUBMISSION AND TABULATION OF PROTESTS A. Submission of Protests:
There will be a hearing conducted in accordance with the provisions of Proposition 218 (California Constitution Art. XIIID). Whether there is a majority protest will be determined in accordance with the following:
1. Count the protests against the total number of parcels subject to the fee [Based on APNs and/or ratepayer’s regular billing].
2. Count one protest per parcel.
3. Where there are multiple parties with an interest in the parcel, protests rights are liberally construed so that a protest by any party counts as a full protest against that parcel. For example, one protest by a tenant, joint owner, a co-trustee of a trust which is the owner, one of multiple owners or a single owner – is sufficient. One tenant in a multifamily rental unit (regardless of the number of units) on one parcel will count as one protest.
Condominiums consist of multiple parcels, so each gets a vote.
4. The written protest must meet the requirements set out in the notice, including that:
protests must be (i) written, (ii) have a clear statement of protest, (iii) identify the legal interest of the person protesting, and (v) identify the address or assessor parcel number of the property. In order to be valid, a protest must bear the original signature of the party with an interest in the property identified on the protest. Protests not bearing the original signature shall not be counted.
5. Protests shall be submitted to the City Clerk, either by delivery (mail or personal) to the office of the City Clerk or by submitting the protest at the public hearing. Protests must be received by the end of the public hearing. No postmarks will be accepted.
6. Although oral comments at the public hearing will not qualify as a formal protest unless accompanied by a written protest, the City Council welcomes input from the community during the public hearing on the proposed fees.
7. Any person who submits a protest may withdraw it by submitting to the City Clerk a written request that the protest be withdrawn. The withdrawal of a protest shall contain sufficient information to identify the affected parcel and the name of the record owner or record customer who submitted both the protest and the request that it be withdrawn.
8. To ensure transparency and accountability in the fee protest tabulation, protests shall constitute disclosable public records from and after the time they are received.
B. Tabulation of Protests:
1. The City Clerk shall determine the validity of all protests. The City Clerk shall not accept as valid any protest if the City Clerk determines that any of the following conditions exist:
a. The protest does not identify a property served by the City. b. The protest does not bear an original signature of a record owner of the parcel identified on the protest.
c. The protest does not state its opposition to the proposed fees. d. The protest was not received by the City Clerk before the close of the public hearing on the proposed fees.
e. A request to withdraw the protest is received prior to the close of the public hearing on the proposed fees.
2. The City Clerk’s decision that a protest is not valid or does not apply to a specific fee shall constitute a final action of the City and shall not be subject to any internal appeal.
3. A majority protest exists if written protests are timely submitted and not withdrawn by the record owners of a majority of the properties subject to the proposed fee.
At the conclusion of the public hearing, the City Clerk shall complete the tabulation of all protests received, including those received during the public hearing and shall report the results of the tabulation to the City Council upon completion. If review of the protests received
demonstrates that the number received is manifestly less than one-half of the parcels served by the City with respect to the fee which is the subject of the protest, then the City Clerk may advise the City Council of the absence of a majority protest without determining the validity of all protests.
EXHIBIT 1D
The City of Yuba City provides safe, reliable
water and wastewater (sewer) services
to approximately 20,000 customers.
This includes treating and delivering clean drinking water; collecting and treating wastewater; maintaining, repairing, and replacing pipes and facilities; and responding to water and sewer emergencies. Additionally, the City must comply with strict state and federal water-quality standards and permit requirements.
Periodically, the City adjusts water and wastewater rates to ensure rate revenues cover the cost of providing these services.
Water and wastewater rates were last evaluated in 2016.
To avoid these problems, the City is proposing a series of water and wastewater rate adjustments over the next five (5) years to cover the cost of providing safe and reliable services.
The City Council will hold a public hearing on the proposed rate adjustments at 6 p.m., Tuesday, May 19, 2026. In addition, property owners or customers of record may submit a written protest for proposed rate adjustments for water services, wastewater services, or both. Please review this notice for more details.
Today, revenues fall short of what’s
needed to properly operate the utilities.
This increases risks of deferred
maintenance, system failures, service
disruptions, and regulatory penalties.
PROPOSED RATE ADJUSTMENTS
TO COVER COSTS FOR WATER &
WASTEWATER SERVICES
!
COMMUNITY INFO. MEETING
6:30 p.m., Thu., April 23
City of Yuba City Utilities
302 Burns Drive, Yuba City
PUBLIC HEARING
6 p.m., Tue., May 19
City of Yuba City, City Council Chambers
1201 Civic Center Boulevard, Yuba City
RATE ADJUSTMENT PROCESS
Rate revenues must pay for operations and maintenance, debt for past and planned projects, and capital improvements. The utilities must also maintain reserve funds for unexpected costs, such as emergency repairs.
Water and wastewater rates have not been reviewed since 2016. Current revenues no longer cover the full cost of providing these services. Recently, an independent consultant evaluated the funding needed over the next five years to operate and maintain the water and wastewater systems. The study found that the water system will need about $9 million more per year, and the wastewater system will need about $15.2 million more per year to cover costs over the next five years.
Major cost increases include electricity, treatment materials, labor, and infrastructure upgrades. Planned projects include about $39.4 million for water system improvements, such as pipeline replacements and water treatment plant upgrades, and about $88.9 million for wastewater improvements, including a $61.8 million state-mandated project to replace the outfall diffuser that discharges treated wastewater into the Feather River.
OUR RIVER-TO-TAP SYSTEM
The Feather River is Yuba City’s primary
source for drinking-water supply. It’s also
where the City discharges treated wastewater.
A failure in the water or wastewater
systems could be harmful to water quality
and public health. To ensure safe and
reliable services, it’s critical that water and
wastewater rate revenues provide for:
Single Family and Multifamily residential customers only pay a fixed monthly charge. Commercial, Industrial and School customers pay fix charges, plus additional charges specific to their customer class. The following rate chart shows proposed rates for each customer class If adopted, rate adjustments will occur on November 1 of each year (will appear on January bills).
Daily operations and maintenance
Compliance with state and federal
water-quality regulations
Equipment repairs and replacements
Larger capital improvement projects
Emergency response to system issues
Feather River
• Utilities Admin
• Environmental Compliance
• Laboratory
• Customer Service
Water Treatment
Water Distribution
20,000+
Water Connections
Wastewater Treatment
Wastewater Collections
16,000+
Sewer Connections
1 4
2 3
5 WATER SYSTEM WASTEWATER SYSTEM
• 1 Water Treatment Plant
(built in 1969)
• 280 miles of water
distribution pipelines
• 6 water storage tanks
• 2 groundwater wells
• 1 Wastewater Treatment Facility
(built in 1972)
• 176 miles of gravity mains
• 3.3 miles of forced mains
• 17 lift stations
Each water customer pays a monthly fixed charge based on the size of their water meter, plus a commodity (consumption) charge for each hundred cubic feet (HCF) of metered water use beyond the base allotment. The following rate chart shows proposed rates for each meter size. If adopted, rate adjustments will occur on November 1 of each year (will appear on January bills).
Most single-family homes have a 1” meter.
New Rates Implemented November 1 of Each Year
Current Rate 2027 2028 2029 2030 2031
Base Rate
1” & less $42.59 $50.67 $57.76 $60.65 $63.68 $65.59
1 - 1/2" $85.18 $93.56 $106.65 $111.99 $117.59 $121.11
2” $170.39 $179.34 $204.45 $214.67 $225.41 $232.17
3” $681.53 $694.06 $791.23 $830.79 $872.33 $898.50
4” $1,363.08 $1,380.34 $1,573.59 $1,652.27 $1,734.89 $1,786.93 6” $2,555.74 $2,581.34 $2,942.72 $3,089.86 $3,244.35 $3,341.68 8” $5,963.42 $6,012.76 $6,854.54 $7,197.27 $7,557.14 $7,783.85 Commodity Charges
All ($/HCF) $2.14 $2.36 $2.68 $2.82 $2.96 $3.05
New Rates Implemented November 1 of Each Year
Current Rate 2027 2028 2029 2030 2031
Residential
Single Family* $65.23 $67.56 $78.03 $83.49 $89.34 $93.36 Multi-Family $52.20 $54.05 $62.42 $66.79 $71.47 $74.69
Commercial
Base Rate $65.23 -
$88.89 $67.56 $78.03 $83.49 $89.34 $93.36
C1 ($/HCF) $2.57 $3.90 $4.50 $4.82 $5.15 $5.39
C2 ($/HCF) $2.57 $4.42 $5.11 $5.47 $5.85 $6.11
C3 ($/HCF) $2.57 $7.07 $8.17 $8.74 $9.35 $9.77
Schools
($/ADA) $29.96 $31.39 $36.26 $38.80 $41.51 $43.38
Industrial **
Volume ($/MG) $3,763.63 $7,778.51 $8,984.18 $9,613.07 $10,285.99 $10,748.86 TSS ($/lbs) $0.290 $0.423 $0.488 $0.523 $0.559 $0.584
BOD ($/lbs) $0.385 $0.433 $0.501 $0.536 $0.573 $0.599
*Includes Stonegate customers
**Industrial service rates now include capital and debt cost share rather than as separate monthly charges
PROPOSED WASTEWATER RATES
PROPOSED WATER RATES
5 EXISTING WATER RATE REVENUE
EXISTING WASTEWATER RATE REVENUE
REQUIRED BY YEAR 5 (2031)
REQUIRED BY YEAR 5 (2031)
10 15 20 25 30 35
$17,354,000
$19,034,100
$26,450,800
$34,299,200
Only for properties that receive water service
Only for properties that receive wastewater service
The City Council has scheduled a public
hearing on the proposed rate adjustments at
6 p.m., Tuesday, May 19, 2026, at Yuba City
Hall, 1201 Civic Center Boulevard, Yuba City.
Property owners or customer of record may submit written protests to the proposed rates prior to the close of the public hearing. Only one (1) water rate and one (1)
wastewater rate protest will be counted per parcel.
If more than 50% of property owners and customers of
record submit protests, the rates cannot be adopted.
A written protest must:
Protests may be mailed or delivered to:
City of Yuba City-City Clerk
Proposed Utility Rate Increase Protest
1201 Civic Center Boulevard
Yuba City, CA 95993
Protests must be received by the City Clerk at this address prior to the public hearing on May 19. Protests may also be submitted to the City Clerk at the public hearing prior to the close of public input. Emailed or faxed protests cannot be accepted.
PUBLIC HEARING &
Yuba City, CA 959931201 Civic Center Blvd.City of Yuba City
WRITTEN PROTEST
Indicate opposition to the proposed water or sewer rates, or both Include the address or parcel number of the parcel
for which the protest is submitted
Be signed and dated
Include the name of the person submitting the protest
FOR MORE INFORMATION:
(530) 870-4619 | [email protected]
www.yubacity.net/departments/utilities/
RATE ADJUSTMENTSWATER AND WASTEWATER NOTICE OF PROPOSED RELIABLE SERVICEINFRASTRUCTURE FOR SAFE, WATER AND WASTEWATER INVESTING IN YUBA CITY’S !
1201 Civic Center Boulevard, Yuba CityCity of Yuba City, City Council Chambers6 p.m., Tuesday, May 19
PUBLIC HEARING
302 Burns Drive, Yuba CityCity of Yuba City Utilities6:30 p.m., Thursday, April 23
COMMUNITY INFORMATION MEETING
DRAFT
CITY OF YUBA CITY
Future Agenda Items
- Councilmember Cole
- Councilmember Kirchner
- Councilmember Shaw
- Vice-Mayor Pasquale
- Mayor Boomgaarden
CITY OF YUBA CITY
Reports and Communications
The following reports and communication items are provided for the Council’s information. No action can be taken on items under this section unless the Council agrees to include it on a subsequent agenda
City Manager’s Report
CITY OF YUBA CITY
Reports and Communications
The following reports and communication items are provided for the Council’s information. No action can be taken on items under this section unless the Council agrees to include it on a subsequent agenda
City Council Reports
- Councilmember Cole
- Councilmember Kirchner
- Councilmember Shaw
- Vice-Mayor Pasquale
- Mayor Boomgaarden
Adjournment