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Council renews stormwater fees; approves 2.38% CPI increase for 2019 clean-water fee
Summary
The Cupertino City Council voted unanimously to renew two property-based stormwater fees: the 1992 storm drain fee will stay unchanged and the 2019 clean water and storm protection fee will increase 2.38% for fiscal year 20252626. Staff said the change adds about $1.12 per year for an average single-family parcel and funds compliance with the Bay
The Cupertino City Council unanimously renewed two stormwater fees on June 3: the 1992 storm-drain fee was renewed with no increase; the 2019 clean-water-and-storm-protection fee was renewed with a 2.38% cost-of-living increase for fiscal year 202526'6.
Ursula Sarova, the city's Environmental Programs and Sustainability manager, told the council the fees pay for activities required under the San Francisco Bay National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit (the Municipal Regional Permit), which implements Clean Water Act requirements in the Bay Area. The permit covers 76 Bay Area agencies and lists multiple categories of compliance. Sarova said the fees fund: - Spill response and review of building plans for stormwater impacts - Annual preventive inspections and trash-capture device installations - Street-sweeping costs (the fee covers about half of the citystreet sweeping expense) - Volunteer creek cleanups and staff-driven maintenance of about 2,100 storm drains
Sarova told the council the 2019 fee contains a CPI-based annual adjustment with a cap at 3%; the calculated CPI change for the current period is 2.38 percent. Increasing that fee by 2.38% will raise revenue by about $27,500 and adds roughly $1.12 per year for the typical single-family parcel.
Cost-share and audits
The cityalso maintains a cost-share program that provides a 20% rebate for qualifying low-income property owners and reduced bills going forward; staff said 277 participants currently qualify. Staff presented agreed-upon-procedures audits for recent calendar years and said auditors found no exceptions.
Budget context and risk
Council questioned staff about projected fund balances. Sarova said staff expects to end this fiscal year under budget and that a negative fund balance forecast for the next year would be addressed from the general fund if necessary. Council asked about whether insurance rates are affected by CAL FIRE maps; staff replied that insurers use more granular underwriting factors beyond the CAL FIRE hazard map.
Action taken
Council voted to adopt resolutions renewing the fees: resolution numbers discussed by staff were Res. 25-036 and Res. 25-037 (as noted in the staff presentation). The vote to renew both fees passed unanimously.
"Cupertino is required under permit to keep our stormwater clean," Sarova told the council during her presentation, summarizing the Municipal Regional Permit as the regulatory driver for the program and fees.
