Article 6. Sewer Facilities of California Water Code >> Division 12. >> Part 5. >> Chapter 1. >> Article 6.

A district may acquire, construct, and operate facilities for the collection, treatment and disposal of sewage, waste and storm water of the district and its inhabitants and may contract with any public agency including but not limited to sanitation districts for sewer outfall facilities. A district also may acquire, construct, and operate facilities for the collection, treatment and disposal of sewage, waste and storm water of inhabitants outside its boundaries; provided that it shall not furnish any such service to the inhabitants of any other public agency without the consent of such other public agency expressed by resolution or ordinance. The term "public agency" as used in this section, shall include a city, county, city and county, public district, municipal or public corporation, state agency or other political subdivision of the state, but shall not include a public utility subject to the jurisdiction, control and regulation of the Public Utilities Commission under the provisions of Divisions 5 (commencing with Section 10001) and 6 (commencing with Section 11501) of the Public Utilities Code.

The district may prescribe, revise and collect rates or other charges for the services and facilities furnished pursuant to this article.

A district may supply sewage and waste services to property not subject to district taxes at special rates, terms, and conditions as are determined by the board for the services.

The district may provide that such rates or other charges may be collected with the water rates of the district and that all rates shall be billed upon the same bill and collected as one item, and that in the event of failure to pay the whole or any part thereof, the district may discontinue any and all service for which such bill is rendered, but this provision shall not be construed to prohibit the collection of rates or charges by the district in any other lawful manner.

Upon providing a sewer system in any area of the district the district may declare the further maintenance or use of cesspools or other local means of sewage disposal in such area to be a public nuisance and may require all buildings used by human beings to be connected with the sewer system within such period not less than ninety days from the completion of the sewer system as may be prescribed by the district; provided, that such buildings to be connected are within one hundred feet of the system.

A district may, pursuant to the notice, protest, and hearing procedures in Section 53753 of the Government Code, fix, levy and collect a sewage and waste service standby or availability charge. If the procedures set forth in this section as it read at the time a standby charge was established were followed, the county board of supervisors may, by resolution, continue the charge pursuant to this section in successive years at the same rate. If new, increased, or extended assessments are proposed, the board shall comply with the notice, protest, and hearing procedures in Section 53753 of the Government Code.

In lieu of the standby or availability charge authorized to be levied and collected pursuant to Section 31104, the Crescenta Valley County Water District may, pursuant to the notice, protest, and hearing procedures in Section 53753 of the Government Code, fix, levy, and collect a sewage and waste service standby or availability charge not to exceed sixty dollars ($60) per available sewer connection per year, unless the standby or availability charge is imposed pursuant to the Uniform Standby Charge Procedures Act (Chapter 12.4 (commencing with Section 54984) of Part 1 of Division 2 of Title 5 of the Government Code). If the procedures set forth in this section as it read at the time a standby charge was established were followed, the Crescenta Valley County Water District may, by an ordinance approved by a two-thirds vote of the members of the legislative body thereof, continue the charge pursuant to this section in successive years at the same rate. If new, increased, or extended assessments are proposed, the district shall comply with the notice, protest, and hearing procedures in Section 53753 of the Government Code.

Notwithstanding Sections 31031 and 31032.1, in the Coachella Valley Water District, the sewage and waste service standby or availability charge shall not exceed thirty dollars ($30) per acre per year for land on which the charge is levied or thirty dollars ($30) per year for a parcel less than one acre. This section, applicable only to the Coachella Valley Water District, is necessary because of the unique and special sewage and waste water management and financing problems in the area included within the district.

Notwithstanding any other provision of this division, the Tuolumne Regional Water District may, pursuant to the notice, protest, and hearing procedures in Section 53753 of the Government Code, fix, levy, and collect a sewage and waste service standby or availability charge of not more than thirty dollars ($30) per acre per year for each acre of land, or thirty dollars ($30) per year for each parcel of land less than an acre, to which sewer service is made available by the district, unless the standby or availability charge is imposed pursuant to the Uniform Standby Charge Procedures Act (Chapter 12.4 (commencing with Section 54984) of Part 1 of Division 2 of Title 5 of the Government Code). If the procedures set forth in this section as it read at the time a standby or availability charge was established were followed, the Tuolumne Regional Water District may, by a four-fifths vote of the members of the board of directors, continue the charge pursuant to this section in successive years at the same rate. If new, increased, or extended assessments are proposed, the district shall comply with the notice, protest, and hearing procedures in Section 53753 of the Government Code.

(a) Notwithstanding any other provision of this division, the Santa Ana Mountains County Water District may, pursuant to the notice, protest, and hearing procedures in Section 53753 of the Government Code, fix, in each fiscal year, within Community Facilities District No. 2 of the district, sewage and waste service standby or availability assessments of not more than two hundred fifty dollars ($250) per year for each acre or portion thereof to which sewage and waste service is immediately available, unless the standby or availability assessment is imposed pursuant to the Uniform Standby Charge Procedures Act (Chapter 12.4 (commencing with Section 54984) of Part 1 of Division 2 of Title 5 of the Government Code). The Board of Directors of the Santa Ana Mountains County Water District may establish schedules varying the assessment according to the land uses and the degree of availability or quantity of use of the sewer capacity to the affected lands.
  (b) The Santa Ana Mountains County Water District may elect to have the assessments authorized by subdivision (a) for the fiscal year collected on the tax roll in the same manner, by the same persons, and at the same time, as, and together with and not separately from, county taxes. In that event, the district shall prepare a written report which shall be filed with the secretary. The report shall contain a description of each parcel of real property and the amount of the assessment for each parcel for the year.
  (c) The sewage and waste service standby or availability assessment authorized by this section shall not be imposed on any subdivided parcel upon which there exists a residential unit which has been connected to domestic sewer facilities of the Santa Ana Mountains County Water District.
  (d) If the procedures set forth in this section as it read at the time a standby or availability assessment was established were followed, the Santa Ana Mountains County Water District may, by resolution, continue the charge pursuant to this section in successive years at the same rate. If new, increased, or extended assessments are proposed, the board shall comply with the notice, protest, and hearing procedures in Section 53753 of the Government Code.

(a) A district may adopt ordinances relating to the provision of services and facilities pursuant to this article and the regulation of those services and facilities. Every such ordinance shall be in full force and effect immediately upon adoption, but shall be published once in full in a newspaper of general circulation, printed, published and circulated in the district within 10 days after adoption, or if there be no such newspaper it shall be posted within 10 days after adoption in three public places within the district.
  (b) The publication of ordinances, as required by subdivision (a), may be satisfied by either of the following actions:
  (1) The district may publish a summary of a proposed ordinance or proposed amendment to an existing ordinance. The summary shall be prepared by an official designated by the board. A summary shall be published and a certified copy of the full text of the proposed ordinance or proposed amendment shall be posted in the office of the board at least five days prior to the board meeting at which the proposed ordinance or amendment or alteration thereto is to be adopted. Within 15 days after adoption of the ordinance or amendment, the board shall publish a summary of the ordinance or amendment with the names of those directors voting for and against the ordinance or amendment and the official shall post in the office of the board a certified copy of the full text of the adopted ordinance or amendment along with the names of those directors voting for and against the ordinance or amendment.
  (2) If the official designated by the board determines that it is not feasible to prepare a fair and adequate summary of the proposed or adopted ordinance or amendment, and if the board so orders, a display advertisement of at least one-quarter of a page in a newspaper of general circulation in the county shall be published at least five days prior to the board meeting at which the proposed ordinance or amendment or alteration thereto is to be adopted. Within 15 days after adoption of the ordinance or amendment, a display advertisement of at least one-quarter of a page shall be published. The advertisement shall indicate the general nature of, and provide information about, the proposed or adopted ordinance or amendment, including information sufficient to enable the public to obtain copies of the complete text of the ordinance or amendment, and the names of those directors voting for and against the ordinance or amendment.

From and after the posting or publication of any ordinance as provided in Section 31105 above, it shall be a misdemeanor for any person to violate any ordinance of the district adopted pursuant to Section 31105.