On April 29 Monterey Park City Council and staff mailed out 28,888 copies of the Notice of a Proposed Rate and Of Public Hearing to Monterey Park property owners and utility users in compliance with Proposition 218.

A Public Hearing was set for June 18 in the City Hall Council Chambers.  The Council could raise the rates on the water, sewer and trash unless their received 8,180 valid protest votes by the property owner or utility users.

Monterey Park has 16,359 parcels and only 1,400 protest votes were received by the June 18 Public Hearing.

Staff presented several options to increase the water and sewer rates based on costs to improve the operations and rebuilt the infrastructure.  Since the city is 98 years old some of the older pipelines have not be replaced unless they ruptured.  The city has spent thousands of dollars on emergency repairs and cleaning up properties that have been damaged by sewer backups.

Several residents were angry that the new rates would be too high for people on a fixed income and young families.

After a lengthy discussion the Council directed the staff to refigure the costs and reduce the sticker shock to the residents and business owners.

The Council extended the hearing until the July 2 meeting for additional discussion and lower rates.

At the July meeting staff presented several lower rates on the water and sewer for the Council’s decision.

Several residents were still not happy with the lower rates but Monterey Park had not raised their water, sewer and trash rates since 2009.

The city was losing money by not increasing the rates to keep up with the current costs. The city was also paying Athens Services the difference in their rates out of the general fund.

After another lengthy discussion the Council majority voted to set the water rates at a 15% increase per year for the next five years; set the sewer rates at a 15% increase for the first year and a 10% increase for the next two to five years; increase the trash rates to the current contract rates with Athens Service and set a discount rate for lifeline rates.

The rate changes will be reflected on the September water, sewer and trash bill that are mailed out to all of Monterey Park utility uses in a bill every two months.

Residents can contact City Hall to see if they are eligible for the new lifeline rates.

Proposition 218 requires that every property owner or utility user have a legal right to protest any rate raises on your utility bills.

For additional information on this issue please go to the city’s website or call City Hall for more information.