Utilities Assistance Program: county reports $24,178 distributed to 81 customers since July 2024; fund balance about $23,352 in April

At the Board of Public Utilities meeting on June 4, staff member Joanne presented an annual review of the Utilities Assistance Program (UAP), reporting that since July 2024 the utility has distributed $24,178 in assistance to 81 customers and had a fund balance of $23,352 as of April 2025.

The UAP is funded entirely by customer donations and serves low‑income residential customers and one‑time hardship cases. Joanne summarized three program variants: winter assistance (October–March), year‑round assistance (customers qualifying via SSI or equivalent), and one‑time assistance (up to $350 per event, available once in a rolling 12‑month window). She said the program’s eligibility for winter assistance uses a local median income cutoff set at 50% of area median household income; the CDP median figure used for qualification will be updated in October to reflect recent census data.

Program and donation data presented: since July 2024 the utility distributed $24,178 of UAP funds to 81 customers; breakdown by program was about 39% year‑round assistance, 41% winter assistance and 20% one‑time assistance. The UAP fund began fiscal year 07/01/2024 with $19,670 and stood at $23,352 in April 2025. Joanne noted other community programs that assist utility customers and reported referral numbers: LAHEAP provided $5,810 since July and LA Cares provided $26,119 in the same period (these are separate assistance programs operated outside the utility’s UAP).

Donation options and controls: customers can give by monthly bill designation, one‑time remittance, or by shopping branded merchandise; donations placed on the utility bill are added to the UAP fund. Board members pressed staff about reactivating an online donation option through the utility’s credit‑card portal; staff said the portal was disabled after fraud attempts where declined credit‑card test transactions caused administrative problems. County staff and board members discussed whether a secure, reenabled credit‑card donation flow with account designators could be implemented; the county’s credit‑card processor also has rules limiting what transactions the utility may accept through that system, County staff said.

Board comments and public compliment: several board members praised the program and encouraged staff to explore secure online donation re‑enablement. A public commenter later in the meeting complimented the water department for prompt leak detection and customer service; that comment was not related to the UAP presentation.

Ending: Joanne closed by describing simple donation options (monthly bill, remittance slip, or merchandise purchases) and invited questions. Board members asked staff to research secure re‑enablement of online donations and to confirm any legal or systems limits with the county’s payment processor.