BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KGET) — Over a dozen members of the community attended the Bakersfield City Council meeting Wednesday to speak out against the city’s proposed five-year sewer rate increase, saying it will place a heavy burden on residents already struggling with existing economic and financial hardships.

The annual sewer rate is $247.13 for residential and commercial connections in Bakersfield, which is collected on the property tax bill.

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City officials are proposing increasing the sewer rate to $475 per year in the first fiscal year, then raising the rate by $100 each year until it reaches $875 in fiscal year 2030-2031.

If approved by the City Council in May, the new increased rate would go into effect July 1.

Notices with the information about the proposed increase and the public hearing were sent out to all affected property owners by March 20, according to city officials.

Thirteen members of the public requested to speak against the proposed sewer rate hike at the first public hearing, but only 10 people got to speak in the 15 minutes given to them. No one came to speak in support of the proposed rates.

Tiffany Ayala, a solid waste equipment operator for the city of Bakersfield and a member of SEIU Local 521, said she didn’t understand why the City Council waited until the “last possible moment” to invest in the city’s wastewater infrastructure.

Ayala said the proposed rates place a heavy burden on working families already stretched thin.

“Have all of our options truly been exhausted before asking residents to carry the cost?” Ayala said. “Is this fair to expect people to take on more when many of us are struggling to make ends meet?”

Mark Adams, a Bakersfield resident of 27 years, said the city’s sewer system didn’t “suddenly reach the dilapidated condition” it is currently described to be in.

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Adams questioned if the inspectors were being incompetent or the city simply ignored their reports. He also said older longtime homeowners with fixed income will be most affected by the proposed increase.

“Has any effort been made to offset the cost for the reconstruction of these facilities by reducing spending in the public works department or any other city departments, or is it just the taxpayers who have to suck it up and tighten their belts?” said Adams.

Claire Collins, an attorney specializing in sewer rates in California, represented Kern County at the hearing to express their concerns about the proposed rates.

Collins said the city’s plan is seeking to increase sewer rates by nearly 400% over the next five years. She asked the city to consider spreading those costs out over a longer period.

The county is also concerned about the errors in how the public was notified, according to Collins, such as the notice of the proposed rates and hearings not being available online and two separate hearing dates possibly raising some confusions among the public.

City officials said the city doesn’t post notices online per its procedures and notices were mailed out to all affected property owners. Additional notices will also be sent out April 25 and May 2, and it is also posted at the City Clerk’s Office on the digital display board, according to officials.

The notices were not sent out in languages other than English, officials said.

At a prior meeting, Vice Mayor Manpreet Kaur asked about possibly creating a program to support those on fixed incomes and protect them from the impacts of the proposed rate increases.

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City Manager Christian Clegg said Sacramento is the only city that operates a similar program. It spends $5.5 million from its general fund for a program like this, he said.

Kaur asked city staff to prioritize the potential creation of this support program during the city’s ongoing budget process for the next fiscal year.

The second and continued public hearing is set for May 13. The City Council will vote to either approve or deny the proposed rate increase that same day following the hearing.

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