Montclair council adopts consent items; separately approves D1 (3–2) and D2 (4–1) with sewer-rate notice

At its meeting, the Montclair City Council considered a consent calendar with two notable pulled items: D1 and D2. Councilmember Lopez flagged D1 for a separate vote and said he opposed the item in part because he views the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) process as burdensome in some development cases.

D2 involved the city’s sewer billing in light of a two-year fee increase adopted by the Inland Empire Utilities Agency (IEUA). Mayor Dutre said he wanted a message included with the sewer/trash billing to inform residents that the rate increases resulted from IEUA action. Council members debated whether to include that insert; some supported notifying residents and others objected to adding explanatory language in the billing materials.

The council voted on the pulled items: D1 was adopted by a recorded result of 3–2 (the transcript records the tally but does not supply an item description in the public remarks); D2, including the billing message that identifies the IEUA board action as the cause of the increase, was approved 4–1.

Council discussion also included procedural concerns about timing and staff communication of a fee study to the policy committee; the mayor and others criticized late distribution of the study materials and said the handling influenced their votes. No additional substantive policy changes were recorded beyond the two votes and the billing-message direction.

The council approved the remaining consent calendar items (excluding D1 and D2) by majority vote earlier in the meeting.