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Moreno Valley council announces settlement requiring Box Springs Mutual to remit utility tax
Summary
After closed session, the city announced the Box Springs Mutual Water Company will collect and remit city utility tax going forward; the council also agreed to waive penalties and craft low-income exemption forms. The settlement was approved in closed session and announced publicly on April 7.
Moreno Valley’s City Council announced April 7 that the council approved settlement terms with Box Springs Mutual Water Company related to an existing litigation matter.
The city attorney said the company will resume collecting the city utility tax from its customers and remit the tax to the city — a step the company had not been taking previously. The city also agreed to waive penalties and interest for the period of delinquent remittances and to help prepare forms and eligibility guidance to help low-income customers claim exemptions.
City Attorney Even Kintine said the city’s decision was driven in part by concern that assessing penalties and interest could prompt the water company to pass costs directly on to customers. The settlement requires the city manager’s office to work with existing state and county benefit-determination processes (Medicaid, CalFresh / SNAP) to identify low-income eligibility criteria for tax exemptions and to produce clear forms for applicants.
The council announced the outcome after a closed-session discussion; the vote on the settlement was reported as unanimous. City staff said the arrangement is intended to ensure the utility tax is collected going forward while reducing any regressive impact on low-income households.
Next steps: staff will bring draft exemption forms and implementation procedures back to city leadership for review and will publish guidance for affected customers.
