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BACKGROUND <br />The City of Pleasanton contracts with the Dublin San Ramon Services District (DSRSD) <br />for wastewater treatment and disposal services. This contractual relationship has <br />existed since the late 1970's when the City's Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP), <br />previously located at the current site of City's Senior Center, was decommissioned. The <br />agreements between the City and DSRSD provide for DSRSD to set regional sewer <br />user charges at levels that will adequately pay for the costs of operating, maintaining <br />and replacing the regional treatment plant located on Johnson Drive in Pleasanton and <br />the Livermore-Amador Valley Water Management Agency's (LAVWMA) pumping and <br />pipeline facilities that export treated wastewater to the San Francisco Bay. <br />The City and the District each operate their own local collection systems that transport <br />wastewater to the District's Regional plant for treatment prior to discharge to the San <br />Francisco Bay. While the local rates differ between the City and the District customers, <br />the regional treatment and disposal rates must be the same per the agreement between <br />the two agencies. Per these agreements, once the DSRSD Board adopts adjustments <br />to the uniform sewer user charges the City must adopt these regional fee changes <br />within sixty days. <br />The District reviews regional sewer user fees, including those for industrial waste <br />customers, biannually (the last rate review occurred in 2004), with assistance from a <br />utility rate consultant and modifies user rates as required. In 2006, DSRSD conducted <br />the study with in-house staff, utilizing a cost based method for the industrial users only. <br />The industrial user fees are fixed fees performed for special services and do not require <br />extensive analysis based on sewer discharge rates and strength. DSRSD's cost based <br />approach helped capture the actual cost of services provided by District for performing a <br />complete analysis of the cost of laboratory staff for conducting tests, including special <br />tests performed by independent laboratories. <br />Industrial Waste Program user charges are not assessed as an incident of property <br />ownership, but are imposed upon and due to the nature of the commercial use of the <br />property. Hence, these fees are not tied to or assessed based upon the landowner's <br />ownership of the property and are therefore not subject to Proposition 218 notification. <br />DISCUSSION <br />Regional Industrial Waste Sewer User Charge Adjustments for FY 2007/2008 <br />The City and District's wastewater collection, treatment and disposal systems are <br />designed to serve the differing flow and wastewater strength demands placed upon <br />them by the various types of users connected to each system. Rate equity among <br />customers is accomplished by determining how each customer's average and peak <br />wastewater strength and flow characteristics, and special service needs such as <br />industrial waste users contribute to the allocation of costs. <br />The regional sewer user bi-monthly charges for industrial waste users fees adopted by <br />the District for fiscal year 2007/08 for all services provided are detailed in Exhibit A of <br />the attached Ordinance and Resolution. <br />Page 2 of 3 <br />