On November 4, 2025, at 9:00 a.m. or as soon thereafter as the matter may be heard at the Oakdale Irrigation District (OID), located at 1205 East F Street, Oakdale, California, a Public Hearing will be conducted by the OID Board of Directors at which time and place all persons may attend and be heard upon the proposed updated water service rates, which if adopted, would apply to all parcels within Improvement District 51 boundary. If the proposed rates are adopted, the first increase will go into effect January 1, 2026; and annually thereafter.

The purpose of this notice is to set forth the proposed, updated water service rates and to notify you of the public hearing. At the public hearing, the Board of Directors will consider all written objections and the District’s responses to those objections, consider written and verbal comments, tabulate written protests, and, if a majority protest is not received, consider adopting the updated water service rates. The procedures for submitting a written objection and/or a written protest are detailed in this notice.

OAKDALE IRRIGATION DISTRICT PROPOSED WATER RATES

The Board of Directors will consider the following proposed water service rate updates, set forth in the table below, at the Board of Directors meeting on November 4, 2025. If the proposed rates are adopted, the first increase will go into effect January 1, 2026.

 How were the proposed rates calculated?

A third-party consultant prepared a 2025 Water Rate Study Report for water services to determine the total amount necessary to ensure there will be adequate funding to meet the Improvement District’s revenue requirements, as well as to review the rising costs of providing services and comply with certain legal requirements. The District’s broader objectives in this study, and the reason for the water service rate increase proposed, include ensuring adequate funding for operating costs, maintaining reasonable reserves, and ensuring revenue stability in utility rates. The rates resulting from this study were developed in a manner that is consistent with industry standard cost-of-service principles. In addition to documenting the rate study methodology, this report is provided with the intent to assist the District in its continuing effort to maintain transparent communications with the community it serves. To read the complete 2025 Water Rate Study Report, visit www.oakdaleirrigation.com/water-rate-study. If you would like a copy of the study to be mailed to you, please contact OID at (209) 847-0341 or cwhite@oakdaleirrigation.com.

PROTESTS AND OBJECTIONS TO THE PROPOSED RATES

Protests:

Property owners or customers of record subject to the proposed water service rates may file a written protest and/or a written objection to the proposed rates. Protests to the proposed rates may be submitted pursuant to section 6 of Article XIII D of the California Constitution, and if protests are submitted by a majority of parcels receiving water services, then the Board of Directors cannot adopt the proposed rates.  

REQUIREMENTS FOR A VALID PROTEST

1. Must be in writing.
2. Must include a statement that it is a protest against the proposed change in water rates.
3. Must provide the name of the record owner or customer of record submitting the protest.
4. Must identify the parcel associated with the person filing the request by assessor’s parcel number or service address.
5. Must include the original signature of the record owner or customer of record submitting the protest.  As such, electronic protests will not be counted.

Protests will not be counted if any of the required elements of a written protest are omitted. Written protests must be received at the address below by 9:00 a.m. on November 4, 2025, if mailed or submitted in person prior to the public hearing. Written protests may also be hand delivered to the Board Secretary at the Board of Directors meeting on November 4, 2025, up until the close of the public input portion of the public hearing on the matter. Prior to the public hearing, hours for in person protest submittal are 7:30 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. Monday through Thursday, closed Fridays.

If prior to the close of the public input portion of the public hearing, written protests are presented by a majority of parcels that receive water services, the Board of Directors will not increase the water service rates from their existing level. Only one written protest per parcel will be counted in calculating a majority protest.

oBJECTIONS:

Objections may be submitted pursuant to Government Code section 53759.1, and any person that wishes to challenge the rates in a legal proceeding must file an objection, which complies with the requirements detailed below. While the same person or entity may submit both a protest and an objection, to be valid, protests and objections must be submitted separately, as clearly labeled, distinct documents.

REQUIREMENTS FOR A VALID OBJECTION

1. Must include a clear statement that it is an objection to the proposed water service rates.
2. Must be filed separately from protests.
3. Must include the name of the record owner or customer of record and the assessor’s parcel number or service address associated with the objector’s parcel that is subject to the proposed water service rates.
4. Must include the specific subsections of the California Constitution Article XIII D, section 6(b) or any other applicable law that the objector believes would be violated by the approval and/or imposition of the proposed water service rates.
5. Must include a detailed explanation, with references to the Water Rate Study, legal authority, and any additional data or evidence the objector chooses to present that will enable the District to understand the grounds for the objector’s claim that the proposed water service rates do not comply with Proposition 218 or any other applicable law.
   • An objection may include expert analysis in support of the objection.
   • If an objection includes expert analysis, the expert’s contact information and statement of their qualifications must be included.
6. Must include the original signature of the objector. As such, electronic objections will not be valid.

To be valid, all written objections must include the information listed above and be received by the Board Secretary by 9:00 a.m. on October 29, 2025, at the address below. Hours for in person objection submittal are 7:30 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. Monday through Thursday, closed Fridays.

Failure to timely object in writing bars any right to challenge the proposed water service rates through a legal proceeding and any such action may be limited to issues identified in the challenger’s objection.

If any of the requirements for a valid, written objection are not met, then the objection will be deemed invalid and will not be considered by the District. Objections must be submitted separately from protests and any written submission labeled as both a protest and an objection shall be deemed invalid.

Prior to the close of the public hearing, the Board of Directors will consider and respond in writing to any timely, valid written objection. The District’s response will explain the substantive basis for retaining or altering the proposed water service rates in response to the written objection, and, if applicable, the grounds for not making any amendments in response to the objection.

The proposed water service rates are subject to Government Code section 53759. You are hereby notified pursuant to Government Code section 53759 that any judicial action or proceeding to attack, review, set aside, void, validate, or annul the Board of Directors’ adoption of the proposed water service rates must be commenced within 120 days of the effective date or the date of the final passage, adoption, or approval of the ordinance or resolution adopting the water service rates, whichever is later.

WHO IS IMPROVEMENT DISTRICT 51? 

Improvement District No. 51 (ID51), also known as the Sunset Oaks No. 10 Maintenance District, was formed in 1979 to provide domestic water to specific parcels within ID51 boundaries. ID51 is managed and maintained by Oakdale Irrigation District (OID).

WHO IS SUBJECT TO THE IMPROVEMENT DISTRICT 51 RATES?

Only ID51 landowners would be subject to the proposed rate increases.

WHY DOES ID51 NEED TO ADJUST OPERATION AND MAINTENANCE (O&M) RATES?

ID51 operation and maintenance rates have not increased since 2016. Costs to operate and maintain the system continue to rise due to regulatory and inflationary pressures. Electricity costs to operate pumps continue to increase in addition to the repair, rehabilitation, and replacement of infrastructure.

The actual cost of providing domestic water service exceeds the revenue generated from the annual assessments. Over the last three years, expenses have exceeded revenue from assessments. The improvement district was intended to operate without outside financial support. However, the current rate of increasing costs is depleting available funds, threatening long-term viability. Reserve funds—set aside for capital improvements to avoid large special assessments—are at risk of being exhausted if rates are not raised.

WHAT HAPPENS IF ID51 DOES NOT INCREASE OPERATION AND MAINTENANCE RATES?

Failure to raise water rates will lead to depletion of reserves intended for capital improvements, potentially resulting in large, unexpected assessments for landowners in the event of a major repair to the system.

ARE THE RESERVE CONTRIBUTION RATES ALSO INCREASING?

The reserve contribution rates are also increasing annually to continue to set aside funds for construction of new well sites.

WHEN IS THE PUBLIC HEARING ON THE PROPOSED INCREASED RATES?

The OID Board of Directors will consider the proposed ID51 operation and maintenance rates at a Public Hearing scheduled for November 4, 2025, at 9:00 am at the District Office Boardroom (1205 East F Street, Oakdale, California).

WHEN WILL THE PROPOSED RATES GO INTO EFFECT?

Provided the OID Board of Directors does not receive sufficient written protests, and the proposed rates are approved on November 4, 2025, the new rate would be billed on the 2026 ID51 assessment invoices mailed in early November 2025 with the first half due December 22, 2025. The proposed rates for the remaining years will be billed annually in early November of each year.

IF I WANT TO PROTEST THE PROPOSED RATES, HOW DO I SUBMIT A PROTEST?

Please refer to Proposition 218 Public Hearing Notice for information regarding filing an objection and/or protest.

WHERE CAN I FIND OUT MORE?

For more information, please visit us at https://www.oakdaleirrigation.com/id51-proposed-water-rates. If you have questions, please contact the OID office at (209) 847-0341, or via email at info@oakdaleirrigation.com.

UPDATES TO FAQS

This list of frequently asked questions (FAQs) will be updated on our website as additional questions are submitted and answered by OID staff at https://www.oakdaleirrigation.com/id51-proposed-water-rates. If you have questions, please contact the OID office at (209) 847-0341, or via email at info@oakdaleirrigation.com.