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The Pleasanton City Council recently directed staff to move forward with new sewer rate structure, rate increases and sewer connection fees, which would result in a nearly $30 increase to the bimonthly sewer bill for single-family homes.
The city’s website explains that these updates are part of the city’s recent sewer rate study, which is designed to “help maintain the long-term reliability of the city’s aging sewer system and protect public health and the environment”.
“By conducting this study, the city can ensure that rates remain fair, equitable and align with the cost of service while providing the financial resources necessary to maintain system reliability, protect public health and environment, and avoid costly infrastructure failure in the future,” Pleasanton’s public works director Siew-Chin Yeong said during the June 2 council meeting.
Mayor Jack Balch noted that 23% of the city’s sewer system is between 56 and 70 years old, while 73% is more than 36 years old.
That’s why, over the past year, the city has been focusing on the comprehensive sewer rate study, which evaluates long-term funding needs and proposes the updated sewer rates, sewer connection fees, and rate-structure changes that “reflect operational, maintenance, infrastructure, and regulatory requirements”.
According to Yeong, the study examined the actual cost of providing sewer services, capital improvement needs, infrastructure replacement and regulatory requirements. It also considered inflation and other cost increases that affect utility operations.
Similar to the recent water rate-setting process, the city implemented a multi-step approach to develop these new rates which included an update to the city’s Sewer System Management Plan, developing a long-term sewer capital improvement plan, performing a financial plan analysis that serves as the basis for the sewer rate study, and preparing the sewer rate study and cost-of-service analysis.
After five discussions, including a workshop, the council is supporting the new rate structure, rates and related fees which all support the city’s “maintain” scenario, listed in the city’s long-term financial plan. That specific scenario “reflects a balanced strategy that addresses high-priority infrastructure needs while sequencing other improvements over time to manage costs and long-term risk responsibly”, according to the city.
“This is a long overdue effort to make sure that we address our infrastructure needs and doing the first-time-ever inspections is part of that,” Councilmember Jeff Nibert said during the meeting.
If approved by the council later in the year, single-family homes will see a nearly $30 increase to their bimonthly sewer bill while Ruby Hill residents will see a $46 increase in their bills.
When Vice Mayor Matt Gaidos asked why the Ruby Hill residents had to pay significantly more, outgoing City Manager Gerry Beaudin said it’s mainly due to Ruby Hill residents paying double for the collection fees. He said there’s a city of Pleasanton collection component and a Livermore conveyance collection component.
“The fees are assessed based on the fact that both systems are needed to get sewage from Ruby Hill to Livermore,” Beaudin said. “This was established when the project was built. It’s been a longstanding, I will call it a frustration, for the folks living in Ruby Hill.”
Under the proposed 2027 rates, office or retail customers would also see a combined sewer bill increase of just over $270. Restaurants that use 154 units of water would also see a roughly $460 increase as well.
The proposed rate changes will also affect Pleasanton schools, depending on whether they are submetered versus non-submetered. According to staff, schools with an average usage of 172 units per bimonthly billing cycle would see their bimonthly sewer bill increase from $849.68 to $1,002.76, a difference of $153.08 per billing cycle.
Of note, residential wastewater flows will be estimated based on household size and indoor “water-use characteristics”, according to the city, while commercial, industrial and institutional wastewater flows will be estimated “using actual water usage data and established industry methodologies”.Â
Nancy Phan, principal consultant of Water Resources Economics, said the reason the increases will be higher during the first year is based on the funding strategy for the sewer system management plan.
“There’s quite a lot of capital investment coming in the next five years … but we also have additional operating costs that are coming with that sewer system management plan as well,” Phan said. “So in order to be able to fund that CIP, issue the debt to fund that CIP, we have to get to a place where we have that capacity to be able to even start that process.”
“So that’s why we’re seeing the highest increases in the beginning,” she added. “Just to get that process started in order to be able to start issuing debt in the latter three years to fund all of that CIP that we need to get done in the next five years.”
Following last week’s meeting, city staff will return next month to seek approval of the final rate study before sending out notices of the rate increases to the public. The final approval of the rate increases is set for November.
If approved, the first rate increases would take effect Jan. 1.
“I recognize that the proposed increase is a significant percentage increase,” Balch said. “None of us enjoy increasing rates.”
“But postponing it doesn’t eliminate the cost and it doesn’t address the system or the needs,” the mayor added. “We are stewards of the system and it’s got to be reliable, financially stable and fair.”
