FSLVW’s Successful Campaign for Ratepayer Assistance
July 1, 2022
Mark Dolson
FSLVW first began researching the possibility of a Ratepayer Assistance Program for SLVWD in January of 2020. Our goal was to fulfill the State’s promise of affordable water for low-income households while simultaneously respecting the constraints imposed by Proposition 218.
Our initial report was submitted to SLVWD Staff in March 2020. It was well received but failed to generate any clear response from the Board.:
This led us to develop and submit (one month later) a concrete proposal for an immediate, exemplary course of action. We called this a “Low Income Ratepayer Assistance” (LIRA) program.:
FSLVW LIRA Proposal to SLVWD Board
This proposal was initially reviewed at the April 16th Board Meeting and then discussed in more detail at the May 7th Board meeting where it was referred to the Budget and Finance Committee with a directive to develop a proposed plan of action..
The Budget and Finance Committee met on June 2nd to review a detailed staff proposal for initiating a LIRA program in 2020. The committee voted 3-0 to bring a $25,000 pilot LIRA program back to the Board for final approval:
FSLVW LIRA Proposal Update 6/2/20
On June 18th, the Board voted 4-1 to launch the proposed pilot LIRA program beginning July 15th. In the course of the Board discussion and public input, however, multiple arguments were offered in opposition to a permanent LIRA program. FSLVW provided the following responses:
LIRA Programs and Proposition 218
In July 2022, SLVWD’s LIRA program (officially known as the “Rate Assistance Program”) began its third year of operation. The original $10 monthly discount was increased in the second year to $15 per month while retaining the $25,000 budget cap. In principle, this would allow for 138 customers to enroll. We estimate that several times this number might actually qualify, but only roughly half this number have actually enrolled. This suggests that there may still be work for the District to do in more effectively publicizing this program:
https://www.slvwd.com/customer-service/webforms/rate-assistance-program