Thousand Oaks council accepts water and wastewater financial plans, sets Nov. 4 Prop. 218 hearing

Thousand Oaks City Council on Sept. 9 accepted updated financial plans for the city—lectricity-dependent water system and the Hill Canyon wastewater system and set a Proposition 218 public hearing for Nov. 4 on proposed rate changes.

The council ccepted staff recommendations that would implement roughly 5% annual revenue adjustments for water in 2026 and 2027 and 7% annual revenue adjustments for wastewater in 2026 and 2027, continue a wholesale water cost pass-through, and adopt drought rates as an optional tool for future use. Council voted 5-0 to accept the studies and to proceed with Prop. 218 notices and the November hearing.

The budget officer, Tara Tosado, told the council the city serves about 17,000 water customers and about 38,000 wastewater accounts and faces substantial near-term capital work. "We have major capital investments planned to keep our critical infrastructure working in good condition for the community," Tosado said, citing about $74.5 million in planned water projects and about $85 million in wastewater projects over the next five years. She also described a proposed reduction in the water and wastewater capital reserve target from two years to one year of average capital spending to ease rate pressure.

Staff said the water plan relies on the wholesale pass-through because nearly all of Thousand Oaks rinking water is imported and therefore sensitive to Metropolitan Water District and Calleguas rate changes. Tosado also described a proposed drought surcharge tool that would be usable only if a drought stage were formally declared and the council voted to enact it, with at least 30 days' notice to customers.

For single-family residential customers, staff presented sample bill impacts: a typical low-use household (about 10 units per month) would see a projected 2026 water bill increase of roughly 9.7%, from about $92.51 to $101.44, reflecting both the base adjustment and the wholesale pass-through. Wastewater fixed monthly charges for single-family homes were proposed to rise from $39.17 to $42.88 in 2026; staff said the wastewater increase equates to about $44 annually and an average increase of about 7% across all accounts.

Staff also described the city's Utility Assistance Program, which provides discounts to income-qualified customers through enrollment criteria tied to other assistance programs. Tosado said the program currently is at about 46% capacity for water and 17% for wastewater and is funded from penalties and fees on delinquent accounts, not from general tax revenues.

Council members pressed staff on the rationale for drought rates and on the distributional effects of the wastewater cost-of-service update. Council members were told the wastewater cost-of-service study reallocated costs based on updated assumptions about flow and strength for customer classes, which increased some nonresidential categories and raised school charges to better reflect after-school and summer usage.

Ending: Council directed staff to mail Prop. 218 notices and scheduled the Nov. 4 public hearing; any final rate adoption would follow the Prop. 218 process and notices to affected customers.