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HomeMy WebLinkAbout8657RESOLUTION NO. 8657 A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF REDLANDS AMENDING AND RESTATING A POLICY FOR THE SUBMISSION AND TABULATION OF PROTESTS WITH RESPECT TO PUBLIC HEARINGS FOR PROPOSED UTILITY RATE ADJUSTMENTS AND REPEALING RESOLUTION NO, 7128 WHEREAS, Article XIIID, section 6 of the California Constitution requires the City to consider written protests to certain proposed increases to utility rates; and WHEREAS, the California Constitution does not offer specific guidance as to who is allowed to submit protests, how written protests are submitted, or how the city is to tabulate the protests; and WHEREAS, the Redlands City Council adopted a policy in 2012 which it now updates as set forth in this Resolution. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF REDLANDS AS FOLLOWS: Section 1. When notice of a public hearing with respect to a utility or other rate adjustments has been given by the City pursuant to Article XIIID, Section 6 of the California Constitution, the following guidelines shall apply: A. Submission of Protests Any property owner or utility customer may submit a written protest to the City Clerk, either by mail or delivery to the City Clerk's Office, 35 Cajon Street, Suite #4, Redlands, CA 92373 or by submitting the protest at the public hearing. Protests must be received by the end of the public hearing. 2. Each protest must state that it is a protest (or indicate opposition to the proposed rates). If the City has given notices for the public hearings regarding rates for both sewer and water service, and those hearings are to be held on the same date, then the protest may indicate whether it is made (i) with respect only to water rates, (ii) with respect only to sewer rates, or (iii) with respect to both water and sewer rates. If no limitation is indicated, the City will interpret the protest as covering all rates to be considered on the hearing date. Email or facsimile protests cannot be accepted. Although oral comments at the public hearing will not qualify as a formal protest unless accompanied by a written protest, the City Council welcomes input from the community during the public hearing on proposed fees. 1 IAResolutions\Res 8600-8699\8657 Resolu5on No._8657-Tabulation of Pmtests.doc jm 3. A protest by a property owner that is a trust must be signed by the Trustee and identified as such with the signature (i.e., John Smith, Trustee for Smith Family trust). Protests by property owners that are corporations, partnerships, or similar entitles must be signed by a person authorized to execute documents on behalf of the property owner. 4. If a parcel served by the City is owned by more than a single record owner, or more than one name appears on the City's records as the customer for the property, or the customer is not the record owner, each owner or customer may submit a protest, but only one protest will be counted per parcel and any one protest submitted in accordance with these rules will be sufficient to count as a protest for that property. 5. In order to be valid, a protest must bear date, designation of parcel address or parcel number, printed name, and original signature of the record owner or customer of record with respect to the property identified on the protest. The customer of record is the name of the person whose name is printed on the utility bills for the parcel. Except as set forth in paragraph 3 above, protests not bearing the original signature of a record owner or customer of record shall not be counted. Protests which have been altered by someone other than the person who signed them shall not be counted. 6. Any person who submits a protest may withdraw it by submitting to the City Cleric a dated, written request that the protest be withdrawn. The withdrawal of a protest shall contain sufficient information to identify the affected parcel and the name of the record owner or record customer who submitted both the protest and the request that it be withdrawn. 7. A fee protest proceeding is not an election. 8. To protect the privacy rights of persons who submit protests, the City will keep written protests confidential until tabulation begins following the protest hearing. Once a protest is opened during that tabulation, it becomes a disclosable public record under state law. However, City staff may open and inspect protests before the hearing to identify them as such and to identify any legal objections for which a response is required under Government Code Section 53759.1(c)(5). B. Tabulation of Protests 1. The City Clerk shall determine the validity of all protests. The City Clerk shall not accept as valid any protest if the City Clerk determines that any of the following conditions exist: a. The protest does not identify a property that will be subject to proposed fees. 2 I ltesolutions\Res 8600-8699\8657 Resolution _No. _5657-Tabulation of Protests.doc-jm b. The protest does not bear an original signature of a record owner or identified as trustee of the parcel identified on the protest or of a record customer of that parcel. c. The protest does not state its opposition to the proposed fees or is illegible. d. The protest has been altered in any way by someone other than the person who is signed to it. e. The protest was not received by the City Clerk before close of the public hearing on the proposed fees. f. A request to withdraw the protest was received by the City Clerk prior to the close of the public hearing on the proposed fees. 2. The City Clerk's decision that a protest is not valid shall constitute a final action of the City and shall not be subjected to any internal appeal. 3. A majority protest exists (50% plus one) if written protests are timely submitted and not withdrawn by the record owners, trustee, or customers with respect to, a majority of the properties subject to the proposed fee. If both water and sewer rates are being considered, a separate determination will be made for with respect to each of these two types of fees. 4. At the conclusion of the public hearing, the City Clerk shall count all protests received, including those received during the public hearing, and shall report the results to the City Council upon completion. If review of the protests received demonstrates that the number received is manifestly less than one-half of the parcels served by the City with respect to the fee which is the subject of the protest, then the City Clerk may advise the City Council of the absence of a majority protest without determining the validity of all protests. 5. If, at the conclusion of the public hearing, the City Clerk determines that the City Clerk will require additional time to count the protests, the City Clerk shall so advise the City Council, which may adjourn the meeting to allow the count to be completed on another day or days. If so, the City Council shall declare the time and place of the count, which shall be conducted in a place where interested members of the public may observe the counting, and the City Council shall declare the time at which its meeting shall be resumed to receive an act in the report of the City Clerk. Section 2. The City Council hereby directs City staff to include the requirements described in Section LA of this Resolution, which govern the submission of written protests, within all notices of protest hearings that are mailed to property owners and customers of City utility services. Section 3. Resolution No. 7128 is hereby repealed. 3 I:\Resolutions\Res 8600-8699\8657 Resolntion_No._8657-Tabulation of Pwtests.doc jm ADOPTED, SIGNED AND APPROVED this 21" day of January, 2025. �'4 L"" '� Marro Saucedo, Mayor ATTEST: c') We Donaldson, City Clerk L•1Resolutions\Res 8600-8699\8657 Resolution_No._8657-Tabulation of Protests.doo-jm 1, Jeanie Donaldson, City Clerk of the City of Redlands, hereby certify that the foregoing Resolution was duly adopted by the City Council at a regular meeting thereof, held on the 20' day of March 2012, by the following vote: AYES: Councilmembers Barich, Tcjeda, Davis, Shaw; Mayor Saucedo NOES: ABSTAIN: ABSENT: rew1ne Donaldson, City Clerk 5 1AResolutions\Res 8600-8699\8657 Resolution No-8657-Tabulation of Protests.doc-jm