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Council adopts resolution to levy special assessments for delinquent utility charges; staff reports revised total delinquency
Summary
Council adopted a resolution to levy special assessments on delinquent utility accounts after staff said the total delinquency amount had been revised; council asked staff for district breakdowns and to examine unusually high numbers tied to trust-owned properties.
The Sacramento City Council opened and closed the public hearing and adopted a resolution to levy special assessments on delinquent utility service charges after the Department of Utilities reported a revised total delinquency amount.
Fadi Jaja, billing services manager with the Department of Utilities, read into the record that Exhibit A in the staff report had been revised and stated the total delinquency amount to be levied as a special assessment was $9,000,916,787.60. He asked the council to open and close the hearing and adopt the resolution.
No members of the public signed up to speak on the item. Councilmember Kaplan thanked utilities staff and asked that future reports identify which delinquencies belong to each council district to help councilmembers target outreach. Kaplan made the motion to open and close the hearing and adopt the resolution; Councilmember Dickinson seconded.
Councilmember Dickinson noted a notable number of delinquent accounts listed under trusts and asked if the city had particular processes to reach trustees. Jaja said the department mails delinquent notices in April and provides customers ample time to respond; he added the department does not currently separate trust-owned properties for additional scrutiny but agreed to look into whether trustees were being reached effectively. “We mail every single delinquent notice in April and we give the community… ample time to reply,” Jaja said.
The motion passed unanimously. Council requested that staff return with more district-level context and follow up on whether notices to trustees are being received and acted upon.
The resolution amends the staff report (Exhibit A) to reflect payments received prior to the hearing and authorizes levying the listed special assessments. Staff said a copy of the revised Exhibit A is on file with the city clerk.
Council did not provide a detailed year-over-year history of delinquency totals during the meeting; Kaplan requested additional background on annual collections to inform outreach and education.
