Earlier editions: 2026-09
Title 10 — WATER, SEWERS AND UTILITIES
Victorville Municipal Code Ch. 10.01 Sewer Rate Ordinance
Victorville Municipal Code · 2026-10 edition · updated 2026-10-04 · Victorville
Cite as: Victorville Municipal Code Chapter 10.01 · Text as of 2026-10-04
Footnotes:
--- (2) ---
Editor's note— Ord. No. 2378, § 4, adopted June 19, 2018, amended chapter 10.01 in its entirety to read as herein set out. Former chapter 10.01, §§ 10.01.010—10.01.040, pertained to similar subject matter. See Code Comparative Table and Disposition List for complete derivation.
10.01.010 - Definitions.¶
Unless specified otherwise, or when another meaning is apparent from the context, the following defined terms when used in this Chapter 10.01 shall have the following meanings:
a. "City sewer system" means all facilities located in and utilized by the city for the collection, transport, pumping, treatment, and disposal of sewage to provide sewer service to its various customer discharger types. The term "city sewer system" does not include any facilities owned by the VVWRA. City sewer system facilities include, but are not limited to, sewers, service laterals, lift and pumping stations, treatment plants and related sewer facilities and equipment.
b. "Dwelling unit" means a residential building or structure, or portion thereof which is arranged, intended or designed to be occupied by not more than one family and having facilities for sleeping, eating, cooking and sanitary purposes.
c. "Single-family dwelling" means a detached residential building or structure consisting of a single dwelling unit.
d. "Multi-family dwelling" means a residential building or structure designed for occupancy by more than one family, consisting of more than one dwelling unit.
e. "Sewage" or "wastewater" means a combination of water-carried wastes from residences, commercial buildings, institutions, and industrial establishments.
f. "Sewer" means a pipe or conduit for carrying or conveying sewage.
g. "Premises" means any building, structure, or portion thereof, located on any lot, parcel or other real property in the city.
h. "Sewer service" means the services and facilities for the collection, treatment, and disposal of sewage furnished to premises by the city sewer system, including any treatment facilities or services provided by the city to its customers using the regional facilities owned by the VVWRA.
i. "Sewer service charges," "sewer service rates," or "sewer service rates/charges" mean the rates, fees, tolls, rentals, or other charges for services and facilities furnished by the city in connection with providing sewer service.
j. VVWRA means the Victor Valley Wastewater Reclamation Authority.
k. "IWWTP" means Victorville Water District's Industrial Wastewater Treatment Plant located at the Southern California Logistics Airport.
(Ord. No. 2378, § 4, 6-19-18)
10.01.015 - Establishment of sewer service rates and related rules.¶
a. The city shall prescribe, revise, and collect its sewer service rates/charges by ordinance approved and authorized by a two-thirds vote of the members of the city council.
b. The rules, regulations, policies, and procedures governing the billing and collection of sewer service rates and the administration of the billing and collection functions thereof, shall be as set forth in such resolutions as the city council may adopt from time to time.
c. The rules, regulations, policies, and procedures establishing or revising administrative fees and charges associated with administering sewer service billing and collection functions (e.g., bank charges, document copying fees, county lien processing fees, and similar charges), shall be set forth in such resolutions as the city council may adopt from time to time.
d. Sewer service rates/charges which remain delinquent for a period of sixty days shall constitute a lien against the property to which the services were provided in accordance with California Health and Safety Code Section 5473.11 and any additional procedures relating to liens, notification of property owners thereof, and/or the city's election to collect delinquent sewer service rates/charges on the county tax rolls pursuant to California Health and Safety Code Section 5473a. Any such additional procedures relating to the matters set forth in the preceding sentence shall be adopted by resolution approved by a two-thirds vote of the members of the city council.
e. All persons in the city whose premises are physically connected to or otherwise use the city sewer system are sewer service customers of the city. Such customers are subject to and shall pay the sewer service charges as set forth herein. The foregoing notwithstanding, the record owner of the property shall ultimately be responsible for payment of sewer service charges. Any agreement between property owners and tenants or other occupants of premises to the contrary will not relieve the record owner of the property of the responsibility for payment of the sewer service charges to the city.
(Ord. No. 2378, § 4, 6-19-18)
10.01.020 - Sewer service customer discharger types.¶
a. The following sewer service customer discharger types shall be used for sewer service billing purposes:
Single-family residential dischargers are those customers whose premises consist of any single-family dwelling, including homes, houses, residences, mobile homes, and other structures intended for and primarily used as single-family dwellings, and are not included in any other customer discharger type.
Multi-family residential dischargers are those customers whose premises consist of multi-family dwellings, including apartment complexes, duplexes, triplexes, condominiums, townhomes, and other similar structures intended for and primarily used as multi-family dwellings, and are not included in any other customer discharger type.
Commercial dischargers are those customers whose premises consist of commercial, institutional, or industrial establishments which are not included in any other customer discharger type. Commercial discharger type customers include hotels, motels, camping facilities, schools, churches, restaurants, office buildings, factories, service stations, hospitals, and other structures, buildings, or facilities primarily used for commercial, institutional, industrial, or manufacturing purposes, whether or not operated for a profit. Ordinances and regulations of the VVWRA require certain commercial customer discharger types to obtain wastewater discharge permits from the VVWRA ("industrial users"), and pay additional charges and surcharges directly to the VVWRA for the treatment or pretreatment of high strength wastewater.
Industrial and/or user-specific dischargers are those customers whose premises consist of buildings, structures, factories, plants, or other manufacturing or institutional facilities that discharge wastewater of unusual strength or character, as determined by the city's evaluation of the concentration, strength factors, and/or control parameters of such user's specific wastewater discharge, including, but not limited to, biochemical oxygen demand ("BOD"), chemical oxygen demand ("COD"), suspended solids ("SS" or "TSS"), ammonia ("NH3"), and fixed dissolved solids ("FDS"). These dischargers are required to obtain a wastewater discharge permit from the IWWTP or the VVWRA, as applicable.
b. The customer or property owner of record for any premises in the city served by the city sewer system shall report to the city any change in usage of the premises or characteristics of sewage discharge therefrom that could affect its customer discharge type classification within sixty days of the date of such change.
c. The city shall, upon notification or discovery of a change in classification of customer discharger type or usage, execute such change for billing and operational purposes and make reasonable allowance for the timing and/or retroactive adjustments of such billings based upon the facts available to and known by the city.
(Ord. No. 2378, § 4, 6-19-18; Ord. No. 2444, § 4, 10-17-23)
10.01.030 - Sewer service charges.¶
a. Monthly sewer service charges for single-family residential and multi-family residential customer discharger types shall be calculated and billed based solely on the number of dwelling units of each customer, as set forth in the sewer rate schedule in subdivision d. of this section.
b. Monthly sewer service charges for commercial customer discharger types shall be calculated and billed based on a fixed amount per customer account, plus a volumetric charge per hundred cubic feet ("hcf") of water used, received, or taken by the customer (as recorded or otherwise estimated by the Victorville Water District, excluding that water used, received or taken exclusively for irrigation purposes), as set forth in the sewer rate schedule in subdivision d. of this section.
c. Monthly sewer service charges for existing industrial and/or user-specific customer discharger types shall be calculated and billed based on the fixed and/or minimum monthly amounts, plus the applicable volumetric charges, and surcharges based upon each customer's individual wastewater constituents (i.e., BOD, COD, SS, TSS, NH 3 , and/or FDS), as set forth in the sewer rate schedule in subdivision d. of this section (additional surcharges may apply should wastewater characteristics change). Monthly sewer service charges for future industrial and/or user-specific customer discharger types shall be determined and calculated by the city based on costs of service, following the evaluation described in Section 10.01.020.a.4 of this chapter.
d. The sewer service rates/charges in the following sewer rate schedule shall be the maximum rates in effect for all sewer service billings made on or after December 1, 2023, and on July 1 of each year thereafter, subject to automatic adjustments that pass through to the city adopted increases or decreases in sewage treatment charges established by the VVWRA. Such automatic adjustments will be made following notice, and as otherwise provided for in Government Code Section 53756:
| Sewer Rate Schedule | Maximum Sewer Rates | Maximum Sewer Rates | Maximum Sewer Rates | Maximum Sewer Rates | Maximum Sewer Rates |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sewer Rate Schedule | 12/1/2023 | 7/1/2024 | 7/1/2025 | 7/1/2026 | 7/1/2027 |
| Residential Customers | Residential Customers | Residential Customers | Residential Customers | Residential Customers | Residential Customers |
| Monthly fixed service charge, per dwelling unit | |||||
| Single-family residential | $59.62 | $62.60 | $65.73 | $69.01 | $72.46 |
| Multi-family residential | $31.32 | $32.89 | $34.53 | $36.26 | $38.07 |
| Commercial Customers | Commercial Customers | Commercial Customers | Commercial Customers | Commercial Customers | Commercial Customers |
| Monthly fixed service charge, per account | $59.62 | $62.60 | $65.73 | $69.01 | $72.46 |
| Volumetric charge, per hcf | $4.54 | $4.77 | $5.01 | $5.26 | $5.52 |
| Industrial Customers | Industrial Customers | Industrial Customers | Industrial Customers | Industrial Customers | Industrial Customers |
| Monthly fixed service charge, per account | $59.62 | $62.60 | $65.73 | $69.01 | $72.46 |
| Volumetric charge, per hcf | $4.54 | $4.77 | $5.01 | $5.26 | $5.52 |
| BOD charge, per lb. | $2.10 | $2.21 | $2.32 | $2.43 | $2.55 |
| TSS charge, per lb. | $2.03 | $2.14 | $2.24 | $2.35 | $2.47 |
| User-Specific Industrial Customers | User-Specific Industrial Customers | User-Specific Industrial Customers | User-Specific Industrial Customers | User-Specific Industrial Customers | User-Specific Industrial Customers |
| Federal Corrections Complex (FCC) | |||||
| Monthly fixed charge per CEDU (see Note 1) | $64.32 | $67.54 | $70.92 | $74.46 | $78.18 |
| BOD charge, per lb. (see Note 1) | $2.10 | $2.21 | $2.32 | $2.43 | $2.55 |
| SS charge, per lb. (see Note 1) | $2.03 | $2.14 | $2.24 | $2.35 | $2.47 |
| Keurig Dr. Pepper (formerly Dr. Pepper/ |
|||||
| Monthly min. charge (excluding capital recovery) | $162,500 | $162,500 | $162,500 | $162,500 | $162,500 |
| Monthly Fixed Charge Ion Exchange (see Note 2) | $10,200 | $10,200 | $10,200 | $10,200 | $10,200 |
| Volumetric charge, per 1,000 gal. (see Note 3) | $0.37 | $0.37 | $0.37 | $0.37 | $0.37 |
| COD Charge, per lb. (see Note 3) | $0.13 | $0.13 | $0.13 | $0.13 | $0.13 |
| FDS charge, per lb. (see Note 4) | $2.99 | $3.07 | $3.15 | $3.24 | $3.32 |
Note 1 - Monthly fixed charge is based on the number of Calculated Equivalent Dwelling Units (CEDUs) on a monthly basis. One CEDU is estimated to be equal to 200 gallons per day of volume contributed to the sewer system. BOD and TSS surcharges apply to concentrations above 200 mg/l for BOD and 250 mg/l for TSS.
Note 2 - Monthly minimum charge for operations and maintenance of an Ion Exchange Treatment System to reduce Keurig Dr. Pepper process flow TDS levels to meet local limits regulated by the State Water Resources Control Board.
Note 3 - Volumetric charges (per 1,000 gal. or lbs.) shall apply accordingly if discharge exceeds 585,000 gpd, 28,100 lbs./day of COD or 1,400 lbs./day of SS in accordance with the DPSG Wastewater Capacity and Treatment Agreement.
Note 4 - The SS charge was replaced with an FDS surcharge as calculated in the Sewer Rate Study and is subject to a 2.7% general cost inflation factor in FY 2019/20 and beyond. This surcharge applies to all pounds of FDS treated.
e. Certain commercial, industrial, and/or user-specific discharger type customers of the city who also discharge high strength flows to the city sewer system and/or qualify as "industrial users" under the ordinances and regulations of the VVWRA, may currently pay or become subject to payment of additional charges directly to the VVWRA for sewage treatment or pretreatment, for which additional charges may increase based on updated control parameters and surcharge rates duly established by the VVWRA.
(Ord. No. 2378, § 4, 6-19-18; Ord. No. 2408, § 3, 2-18-20; Ord. No. 2444, § 5, 10-17-23)
10.01.040 - Sewer capacity charges.¶
a. Definitions. Sewer capacity charges (as defined in Government Code Section 66013) have been established for residential and non-residential development on a per equivalent dwelling unit ("EDU") basis as part of the City's Development Impact Fee program as set forth in Section 16-5-01.080 of Title 16 of this code. An EDU represents the estimated daily sewer flow of a typical single-family dwelling unit, which is approximately one hundred forty-nine gallons per day (gpd) or twenty plumbing fixture units as defined in the latest version of the California Plumbing Code as adopted by the city in Title 16 of this code. An EDU analogue may also be determined using the projected daily average sewer flow as provided by the prospective development and dividing that flow by 149 gpd.
b. Calculation. The total sewer capacity charge per house, habitation, structure, or other development is calculated by multiplying the currently applicable per EDU sewer capacity dollar amount (as set forth in the city's most recently adopted Development Impact Fee master fee schedule) by the applicable number of EDUs. The following table provides the generally-applicable minimum number of EDUs for various types of development. However, to ensure that the city's sewer system provides adequate capacity to serve new development and to account for potential classification anomalies, the city retains the discretion to use the minimum EDUs set forth in the table below or a flow-based EDU analogue as described in subdivision a. of this section to calculate the appropriate total sewer capacity charge:
| Type of Connection | Description | Minimum EDU |
|---|---|---|
| Residential: | Residential: | Residential: |
| Single family dwellings | Twenty (20) plumbing fixture units (PFU) or less; incremental charges added proportionally for connections in excess of twenty (20) PFUs. | 1.000 |
| Multi-family dwellings | Per dwelling unit | 0.916 |
| Trailer or mobile home park | Per space | 1.000 |
| Commercial: | Commercial: | Commercial: |
| Motels | Per dwelling unit; one-quarter (0.25) additional EDU for each dwelling unit with kitchen. | 0.500 |
| Hotels | Per bedroom; one-quarter (0.25) additional EDU for each dwelling unit with kitchen. | 0.500 |
| Animal clinics | 3.000 | |
| Barber shops | 1.300 | |
| Beauty shops | 1.300 | |
| Bottling works (soft drink) | 4.000 | |
| Churches | Without kitchen | 1.000 |
| Churches | With kitchen | 2.000 |
| Churches with schools | See Elementary Schools, High Schools, and Junior High Schools. | 1.000 |
| Factory | One additional EDU for each ten or fewer employees after the first ten. The city reserves the right to determine that a particular class of industrial customer shall be subject to these provisions or any modification thereof. In such event, the affected customers shall be given at least fourteen days' written notice prior to a hearing by the city council thereon. | 4.000 |
| Food market | One additional EDU per month for commercial garbage grinder. | 1.000 |
| Hospital | One additional EDU for up to each two beds after the first two. | 1.000 |
| Industrial | The greater of: One additional EDU for each ten or fewer employees after the first ten; or number of EDUs to be determined based on plumbing fixture counts. The city reserves the right to determine that a particular class of industrial customer shall be subject to these provisions or any modification thereof. In such event, the affected customers shall be given at least fourteen days' written notice prior to a hearing by the city council thereon. | 4.000 |
| Laundries and laundromats | One additional EDU for each three or fewer machines after the first three. | 1.000 |
| Libraries | 1.000 | |
| Mortuary | 2.000 | |
| Professional building | Per suite | 1.000 |
| Public buildings | The greater of: One additional EDU for up to each additional ten employees after the first ten; or Number of EDUs to be determined based on plumbing fixture counts. | 1.000 |
| Restaurants with bar | One additional EDU for up to each fifteen seats after first thirty. Drive ins—Each one service space equals four seats. | 4.000 |
| Restaurants without bar | One additional EDU for up to each fifteen seats after first thirty. Drive ins—Each one service space equals four seats. | 2.000 |
| Rest homes | One additional EDU for up to each three beds after the first three. | 1.000 |
| Elementary schools | One additional EDU for up to each twenty-three average daily attendance after the first twenty-three. | 1.000 |
| High Schools and Junior High Schools | One additional EDU for up to each fourteen average attendance after the first fourteen. | 1.000 |
| Service stations with rack | 4.000 | |
| Service stations without rack | 2.000 | |
| Service stations with RV dumping station | 3.000 | |
| Taverns | One additional EDU for up to each fifteen seats after first thirty. Drive ins—Each one service space equals four seats. | 2.000 |
| Theaters | Each sewer connection | 2.000 |
| General Commercial—Establishments not listed above or separately classified by future action of the council | Number of equivalent EDUs to be determined based on plumbing fixture counts. | 1.000 |
c. The city further collects a regional VVWRA connection fee for capacity in the regional interceptor sewer and treatment facilities. This regional connection fee is set by and subject to inflationary adjustment as determined and approved by the VVWRA commission.
(Ord. No. 2378, § 4, 6-19-18; Ord. No. 2444, § 6, 10-17-23)
Get a plain-English answer with a citation back to this text.
Ask AI about this code