Come to Tuesday Oxnard City Council meeting re: 1st year 56% utility rate increases
By Phil Molina
Good article by Mr. Aaron Starr. There is one small correction that might be important: the text of the law is that if 50% plus 1 vote against the rate increases determined by the total of the votes cast the city must stop the proposed rate increases. That doesn’t mean that 20,000 +1 must vote against the increase to stop the city. For example, if the city receives 5,000 total responses and 2501 respond (50%+1) against the rate increases, the city must stop the increases. My concern is the article could make it sound impossible to stop the city, but that is not the case! (SEE ACTUAL LAGUAGE BELOW.)
If we work to make sure everyone who receives a notice actually votes, I am sure we can stop the city from increasing our utilities rates!
If the city actually wanted public participation it would send the notices with a self addressed postage paid envelope.
Ca. Constitution Article XIIID:
Sec 4
(e) The agency shall conduct a public hearing upon the proposed assessment not less than 45 days after mailing the notice of the proposed assessment to record owners of each identified parcel. At the public hearing, the agency shall consider all protests against the proposed assessment and tabulate the ballots. The agency shall not impose an assessment if there is a majority protest. A majority protest exists if, upon the conclusion of the hearing, ballots submitted in opposition to the assessment exceed the ballots submitted in favor of the assessment. In tabulating the ballots, the ballots shall be weighted according to the proportional financial obligation of the affected property.
Sec 5
(a) Any assessment imposed exclusively to finance the capital costs or maintenance and operation expenses for sidewalks, streets, sewers, water, flood control, drainage systems or vector control. Subsequent increases in such assessments shall be subject to the procedures and approval process set forth in Section 4.
Respectfully,
Phillip Molina, CPA, MBA, Certified Court Mediator
Huge Oxnard utility bill increase possible- please protest
By Aaron Starr – Utility bills could soon skyrocket in Oxnard. On October 13 the Oxnard City Council unanimously directed staff to move forward with a process designed to raise utility rates by nearly 65%, an increase of almost $800 per year for an average single-family home. Ratepayers will be mailed an official notice of […]
Oxnard Holds Utility Rates Workshops
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By Lawrence P. Stein- Editor’s note: The new Oxnard Utilities Rates Advisory Panel, (URAP) has created quite a bit of healthy discussion. Even though he previously predicted a trebling of utility rates, he believes that consumers are being outrageously overcharged for water to support what he feels is an overly expensive,inefficient GREAT water recycling program and […]
Local Oxnard accountant-activist predicts trebling of water rates
By Lawrence P. Stein- Editor’s note: Mr. Stein took the best information he could find and calculated the impact on water projects debt service and rates. The exact timing and amount cannot be known for sure, because it is all based on rough plans, cost estimates, interest rates, transaction timing and even the city’s bond […]
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