Ukiah water director outlines consolidation model, warns some small systems could face sizable rate increases

Ukiah’s director of water resources, Sean White, told the Clearlake City Council on Aug. 15 that a carefully staged consolidation of neighboring special districts can unlock state grant funding but may raise customer rates in areas with deferred maintenance.

White described a two‑year effort in which the city and surrounding districts formed a joint powers authority to pursue SAFER (State Water Resources Control Board) incentives. “They will pay up to $60,000 per connection,” White said, citing the program’s per‑connection incentive for consolidation work. He said the money is intended to help underwrite interties, rebuilt infrastructure and other capital work needed to create a single, reliable utility.

White said the Ukiah consolidation aimed to create scale — shared engineers, planners, compliance staff and operations — that small, standalone systems lack. He told the council that many small districts carry deferred maintenance and limited operating budgets: “some of their rates are unsustainably low,” White said, adding that modernization likely will require moving rates toward a sustainable level so the system can be maintained going forward.

Council members and water managers in Clearlake asked specific questions about grant certainty, rate impacts and governance. Frank Koster, a local water‑district general manager, emphasized that consolidation does not guarantee grants and urged transparent outreach to affected customers. White acknowledged the uncertainty around state budgets and grants but said those who establish a track record of executing projects become more competitive for funding.

White described Ukiah’s experience winning large grants and noted that while some districts that join consolidation may face substantial rate increases, others will see smaller adjustments. He said the city planned to absorb staff from consolidating districts rather than lay off employees and that, in some cases, customers now paying very low monthly bills could see sizeable increases as systems are brought to current standards.

Next steps discussed included further technical briefings for the council, stakeholder outreach to local districts and exploration of available SAFER and other grant windows. The council did not take a formal action to join or authorize local consolidation during the meeting; the session provided local officials with a case study and questions to guide follow-up work.

The council’s water‑policy discussion will continue at future meetings if staff returns a formal report or recommendation.