What's Happening?
In late February 2022, the District sent mail ballots to the owners of all properties in the District that pay the stormwater fee. The District cannot approve a stormwater rate increase on its own. Only Vallejo property owners can do that. The ballot asks voters - yes or no - whether to increase the stormwater fee annually over the next five years. Ballots are due back to the District before 5:00 p.m. on Thursday April 7, 2022. Counting will begin on Friday April 8, 2022 at 9:00 a.m. See FAQs Section for more information about the process for counting ballots.
Proposed Stormwater Fee Was Not Approved by Vallejo Property Owners
Vallejo Flood & Wastewater District announced on April 11, 2022 that the proposed stormwater fee for Vallejo property owners did not pass the vote. The modest fee increase was put forward to help cover the cost of providing flood protection, improve water quality in local creeks and lakes with trash removal, and other projects that are required under California and federal laws. Most Vallejo residents have not seen an increase to their $1.97 per month stormwater fee in 25 years.
“Between the double impacts of COVID and high inflation, we knew it was a very difficult time to ask this of our community,” said Melissa Morton, District Manager, “But we also knew how critical this infrastructure is to our residents and businesses. The property owners who voted were clear that a fee increase was not desired at this time. We will do our best to maintain the excellent service that Vallejo depends on, and will continue to communicate with our community regularly about the state of the stormwater system.”
Of the 32,331 ballots mailed to property owners, 7,210 (22.30%) were returned. 32.21% were in favor, and 67.79% were opposed.
To learn more about the proposal, resources are available on this webpage under the section called "More Information." You can also email us your questions or concerns, or call 707.644.8949.
