Monterey One Water forecasts major capital needs; previews possible 8% wastewater rate increase

Paul Sciutto, executive officer of Monterey One Water, gave the council a technical overview March 4 of the regional wastewater and recycled‑water agency’s operations, infrastructure needs and a potential rate adjustment.

Sciutto said Monterey One Water operates a 30‑million‑gallon‑per‑day treatment plant and handles conveyance for member agencies. The utility now produces roughly 60% of potable demand for its service area through the Pure Water Monterey potable reuse expansion. Sciutto described the agency’s recent investments — including a food‑waste receiving station to co‑digest biosolids, which increases biogas production — and said staff plan to bring a renewable‑energy project forward that conditions biogas into renewable natural gas and replaces aging internal combustion generators with more efficient linear generators.

Sciutto told the council the utility faces a roughly $500 million capital‑project program over the next ten years (spread unevenly across years) and that aging electrical infrastructure and plant equipment require reinvestment. To fund the combined operations and capital needs, staff and the board will propose a rate schedule; preliminary analysis points to an approximate 8% increase phased under Proposition 218. For a typical single‑family dwelling with a current monthly wastewater charge of $54, an 8% increase would raise the charge to about $58.32, Sciutto said.

He also outlined the Proposition 218 notice and protest process: draft rates and a study will go to the board, notices will be mailed, and customers will have a 45‑day comment period followed by a public hearing; the board must evaluate protests (a majority protest of 50%+1 of accounts would block the increase).

Public commenters raised affordability concerns; one resident said the increases were already substantial when local add‑ons are included and said she plans to file a protest under Proposition 218 if rates rise. Sciutto said the utility has a customer assistance program funded with non‑rate revenue that has helped about 900 qualifying customers, and staff will consider additional measures to assist low‑income customers.

What’s next: Monterey One Water will present a draft rate study to its board in March and, if approved for notice, will begin the Proposition 218 mailing and public comment process. Pacific Grove councilmembers asked staff to continue coordinating with Monterey One Water and to amplify outreach for low‑income assistance.

Quote: “It looks like we’re going to be asking for about an 8% rate increase… That would be $58.32 for the typical single‑family dwelling,” said Paul Sciutto.