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Board members raise equity and legal concerns about charging full rates after disaster
Summary
Committee members questioned whether charging full base-rate sewer and water fees to properties not using services after a declared disaster is equitable or politically feasible, and asked staff for clearer scenario summaries and legal options before any ordinance is advanced.
A committee member questioned whether the draft disaster policy’s authority to collect full base-rate charges from parcels that are not using service after a large disaster would be equitable or politically supportable. That member said the proposal "would be a little hard to swallow" and urged staff to include clear scenario comparisons (single-house loss vs. neighborhood-scale loss) in the staff report to show the consequences for customers.
Board members raised specific equity concerns about vacant or undeveloped lots that could be charged the same standby fees as parcels that lost homes and were uninhabitable for years. One member warned that charging owners of long-term vacant parcels while other undeveloped lots pay nothing would be "not equitable" and pressed staff to consider alternative fee structures (50% or 25%) or time-limited approaches before bringing an ordinance forward.
Members also asked legal questions about whether the district could adopt or apply such charges after a disaster has occurred; staff said they would check legal options and noted the Paradise Irrigation District implemented a 50% service charge after its disaster. Staff said the draft currently uses full base-rate collection as a starting point but that the board would retain discretion to adjust charges according to district finances.
