City finance and utility staff told the council at a workshop that they will return with a more user-friendly and data-driven utility fee schedule after discussion about emergency shutoff charges, tap fees, tap-assessment backlog and billing errors.

Victoria Sanchez, the city's director of finance, introduced proposed amendments forwarded by utility staff and said Randy (the utility technician referenced) recommended raising the emergency shutoff valve fee from $25 to $50 because material costs have risen. She also explained the city moved fees out of the ordinance in 2021 and now updates them by annual council resolution; the last resolution was passed in August 2024, staff said.

Why it matters: council members and utility staff debated whether routine meter and tap work should be billed as flat fees or on a time-and-materials basis. Proponents of flat fees said they give customers price certainty and make TAP assessments faster and easier; opponents cautioned about variable conditions such as mains on the opposite side of the street, deep caliche/rock and tree roots that can add labor and materials.

Staff also reported recent billing issues: a prorating problem created higher-than-expected charges for some customers (staff are processing roughly $3,000 in adjustments in the current correction process) and inactive meters were sometimes billed. Staff said they will prepare clearer customer-facing language and outreach for upcoming corrections and refunds.

Next steps: council asked utility staff (including Mike Macias, director of water and wastewater, and Carmen Rodriguez, customer service clerk supervisor) to gather vendor/wholesale pricing, model tap-fee scenarios (flat-rate levels and exception triggers), and produce an impact estimate for proposed per-unit increases (council suggested an incremental approach rather than large percentage jumps). Staff proposed another workshop in January to present the rate-study findings and recommended fee schedule.

The workshop record contains no final rate vote; council directed staff to return with recommended changes and customer communications.