Cerritos council approves water and sewer rate adjustments after heated public hearing

The Cerritos City Council on Jan. 26 approved staffrecommended adjustments to the city's water and sewer rates after a lengthy public hearing in which dozens of residents spoke and the city clerk reported 6,400 written protests.

The vote to adopt the staff recommendation (items 1, 2, 3A, 4 and 5 in the agenda report) passed on a recorded roll call after the clerk said the number of valid written protests was below the Proposition 218 majority-parcel thresholds. The Council recorded the final tally in the transcript as passing by a 4-0 vote with one abstention.

Why it matters: City staff said the increases are necessary to fund critical repairs and capital projects for an aging water system. Director of Public Works Alvin Papa told the Council the city has three active wells, one well (C4) out of service because of casing damage and PFOS contamination, and reservoirs and valves that are more than 50 years old. Staff identified about $25 million in the most-critical water capital projects and stressed that delaying work risks more frequent emergency repairs and much higher imported-water costs when wells are offline.

Direct costs and schedule: Papa said an emergency C4 repair already approved by Council in December cost more than $600,000 and that since October the city has paid roughly $196,000 for additional imported water while the well was offline. He said work on the C4 repair is scheduled to begin in February with an anticipated completion in early May if everything goes according to plan.

Protests and public comment: The clerk reported 6,400 written protests were received before the close of the hearing; staff noted that number is below the statutory majority threshold (the city listed 15,148 water parcels and 14,998 sewer parcels). The public comment period featured more than 30 speakers during the item; many residents urged the Council to delay or scale back the proposal, citing affordability for seniors and households on fixed incomes, requests for clearer multilingual outreach, and calls for alternatives such as bonds, grants or a sales-tax measure.

Representative remarks: Rocky Pavone, who identified himself as a certified financial educator, told the Council, ","claim":"We ... are being attacked by such an astronomical water increase up to 300%.","claim_type":"assertion","target":"city rate proposal","status":"unresolved","response":null}

(Full transcript quotes from public comments are on the public record.)

Council response and next steps: Several Councilmembers acknowledged residents' concerns while emphasizing fiscal and operational risk if the city continued subsidizing water from the general fund. Mayor Pro Tem Linda Johnson (speaking as Mayor Pro Tem Johnson in the transcript) urged residents to consider that the city had been subsidizing water for years and that the adjustment was intended to return the enterprise fund to sustainability. Council asked staff to return with a report on alternative revenue sources (federal/state grants, potential sales-tax or utility-user-tax options, and bond feasibility) and confirmed staff would pursue grant opportunities immediately.

Low-income assistance and budget impact: Staff proposed a low-income assistance program to offset impacts for qualifying households; staff estimated annual program cost at roughly $550,000 $650,000 and recommended a $200,000 general-fund budget amendment to implement the program this fiscal year. Papa said the discount was designed to be bimonthly and based on existing CARE-like eligibility criteria; documents in the record describe the credit as approximately $40 bimonthly.

Implementation: The Council approved the resolutions on the agenda that update the water and sewer rate schedules; the staff report and notices state any adopted rate adjustments could take effect on Feb. 1, 2026, if no majority-protest conditions prevent adoption. The Council also authorized the recommended budget amendment to fund the low-income assistance pilot and directed staff to provide periodic reporting so the Council can consider future adjustments if alternate revenues are secured.

What to watch: Staff said construction and permitting timelines for new wells and treatment facilities can take multiple years; the city's requests for federal and state grant funding may influence future rate decisions. The City Clerk's tabulation of valid protests remains part of the record.

Sources: City staff presentation and rate study (Water Resources Economics), remarks by Alvin Papa, city manager and the City Clerk's tabulation of written protests.