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MEETING DATE: April 03, 2018
AGENDA ITEM: Resolution Adopting New Fees for the City of Livingston for the Review of Erosion Sediment Control Plan or Storm Water Pollution Prevention Plan Pursuant to the City of Livingston Phase II Municipal Separate Sewer Storm System Permit and New Fees for the Furnishing and Hookup of Water Meters.
MEETING DATE: April 3, 2018
PREPARED BY: Noe Martinez, Gouveia Engineering, Inc.
REVIEWED BY: Jose Antonio Ramirez, City Manager
RECOMMENDATION:
Adopt Resolution No. 2018-_, approving new fees for the City of Livingston for the review of Erosion Sediment Control Plan and Storm Water Pollution Prevention Plan pursuant to the City of Livingston Phase II Municipal Separate Sewer Storm System Permit and new fees for furnishing and hookup of water meters.
BACKGROUND AND DISCUSSION – MS4 PERMIT FEES:
On November, 2015, the City of Livingston adopted Ordinance No. 625 for new regulations against pollution of storm water runoff pursuant to its Small Municipal Separate Storm Sewer Systems (MS4) Permit. MS4 compliance is a Federal mandate from the Clean Water Act of 1977 as amended in 1987. The MS4 regulations were issued by the State through the California Water Resources Control Board Order No. 2013-0001-DWQ. The City established a Storm Water Program to implement, monitor, and enforce these MS4 regulations.
The City of Livingston’s MS4 regulations for construction activities require that any ground-disturbance project that applies for a City permit must submit a plan for management of storm waters during construction. Applicants must submit an Erosion Sediment Control Plan (ESCP) or Storm Water Pollution Prevention Plan (SWPPP) to identify the project’s potential pollution activities and their respective Best Management Practices (BMPs). BMPs are used to prevent sediment erosion and contain storm water runoff. Some BMPs include sand bags, fiber rolls, silt fences, track-out gravel, street sweeping, etc.
There is a cost to the City to review the ESCPs and SWPPPs from applicants that should be reimbursed as part of the permit fees.
Staff has determined the cost to review a typical ESCP or SWPPP submittal with corresponding BMP inspections for a project. The minimum cost for submittal reviews and BMP inspection per project would be $561.75. The table below shows the cost that would be assessed as the MS4 Fee for all applicable projects on a deposit basis. This minimum fee assumes a project duration less than 2 months. Projects with longer durations (each additional month) would be subject to additional fees beyond the deposit amount. The additional fee would be a one-time monthly charge of $62.50 ($50 x 1.25 hours). This fee will apply on the first day of each additional month.
|
Description |
Amount |
Notes |
|
SWPPP/ESCP Review Fee |
$ 385.00 |
Based on City’s cost per consultant contract |
|
BMP Inspection Fee (2.5hrs) |
$ 150.00 |
Assumes project duration less than 2 months |
|
Administrative Fee (a), 5% |
$ 26.75 |
|
|
Total Fee |
$ 561.75 |
Deposit amount |
BACKGROUND AND DISCUSSION – WATER METER FEES:
The City currently furnishes and installs (hookup) residential and commercial water meters for every new water service in the City of Livingston. This practice ensures that all water meters are consistent with the City specifications for manufacturers and models. This practice also allows the City to optimize the water system inventory and provides efficiency and cost savings as a result of the Staff’s familiarity with the system equipment. The meter brand installed city-wide is Sensus. Currently, the City only accepts the Sensus meter and Meter Transceiver Unit (MXU) so it is compatible with the City’s SCADA System.
The MXU provides the automatic reads for billing purposes.
The City purchases the meters and MXUs directly from a Sensus local distributor. The City passes on this cost to the water customer plus the labor fee for the meter hookup. The manufacturer’s meter prices are adjusted every year for Consumer Price Index (CPI) rate increases and the prices vary by meter size/model and service type. Most commercial water customers will require a meter for potable (domestic) water and a separate meter for irrigation service.
Staff has determined the time it takes to hookup the meter depending on the size. Except for the meter and MXU, the water customer is responsible for installing all other service components including the meter box, tubing, corporation stop, service saddle, spools, fittings, valves, and any other work necessary for a complete water service connection. The minimum meter fee would be $616.56 for a 1-inch meter and increases based on the meter size (see attached 2018 Water Meter Fees Schedule). This fee includes the manufacturer’s cost plus the City’s labor and administrative cost. The annual CPI increase would only apply to the manufacturer cost’s portion of the fee. The City’s labor and administrative cost would remain the same unless it is adjusted in the future by resolution.
FISCAL IMP ACT:
Approval of the proposed MS4 and water meter fees would provide full and fair compensation to the City for the products and services rendered.
ATTACHMENTS:
1. Resolution 2018-
2. 2018 Water Meter Fees Schedule
RESOLUTION NO. 2018-
A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF LIVINGSTON ADOPTING NEW FEES FOR THE CITY OF LIVINGSTON FOR THE REVIEW OF EROSION
SEDIMENT CONTROL PLAN OR STORM WATER POLLUTION PREVENTION PLAN PURSUANT TO THE CITY OF LIVINGSTON PHASE II MUNICIPAL SEPARATE SEWER STORM SYSTEM PERMIT AND NEW FEES FOR THE FURNISHING AND HOOKUP OF WATER METERS
WHEREAS, the City Council of the City of Livingston supports and promotes compliance with State and Federal mandates governing the management of storm water runoff and protection of surface waters pursuant to the Clean Water Act of 1977 as amended in 1987; and
WHEREAS, the City Council of the City of Livingston supports and promotes reliability and efficiency of its water system operations through the use of uniform water meters; and
WHEREAS, the City currently reviews Erosion Sediment Control Plan and Storm Water Pollution Prevention Plan for ground-disturbance projects that require a City permit pursuant to the City of Livingston Phase II Municipal Separate Sewer Storm System (MS4) Permit and there is a cost to the City associated with these services; and
WHEREAS, the City currently furnishes and hooks up water meters for every new water service in the City of Livingston to maintain consistency of the meter make and model for compatibility with the City’s SCADA system and water system efficiencies and there is a cost to the City associated with these products and services; and
WHEREAS, the City Council desires to establish new fees for MS4 reviews and water meters that are fair compensation and provide full cost recovery to the City of Livingston for these products and services based on estimated time/costs to complete the work and manufacturer prices; and
WHEREAS, these fees are not subject to the Mitigation Fee Act (Government Code Section 66000 et seq.) requirements for a nexus study and public hearing prior to adopting government fees; and
WHEREAS, California SB 231, effective January 1, 2018, clarified the extent to which sewer and water fees are exempt from the procedures set forth in the California Proposition 218 (California Constitution Articles 13C and 13D) requiring a nexus study, voter approval, and public hearing prior to adopting certain fees; and
WHEREAS, these fees are not subject to those requirements of Proposition 218; and
WHEREAS, the City does not have anybody on record requesting notice of new or increased fees or service charges; and
WHEREAS, pursuant to Government Code Section 66016, the information regarding the amount of fees and costs required to provide the services for which the fees will be assessed, and the revenue sources anticipated to provide the services, was available to the public at least 10 days before this meeting; and
WHEREAS, this project is exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) pursuant to Section 15300.1 (Ministerial Projects).
Passed and adopted this 3rd day of April, 2018, by the following vote:
AYES:
NOES:
ABSENT:
ABSTAIN:
 |
Jim Soria, Mayor
of the City of Livingston
ATTEST:
I, hereby certify, that the foregoing resolution was regularly introduced, passed and adopted at a Regular Meeting of the City Council of the City of Livingston this 3rd day of April, 2018.
 |
Antonio Silva, City Clerk of the City of Livingston
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