Stormwater Fees Hit Los Angeles County Schools Where It Hurts

It’s an unpleasant surprise many businesses and organizations have faced—huge stormwater fees. Some school districts in California are now grappling with the question of how to pay. Los Angeles County is considering a property tax—a stormwater parcel tax—to fund stormwater management. It expects to bring in $275 million a year, some of which would be given to cities within the county. The amount a given parcel would be charged depends on the amount of impervious surface. The county expects the average homeowner’s fee to be about $50 a year. For many commercial and industrial lots, the stormwater fee might amount to several thousand dollars. School districts, with a tremendous amount of property throughout the county, would collectively pay about $14 million per year. Many organizations, including federal facilities and churches, which are tax-exempt, have argued that they should also be exempt from paying stormwater fees. But the stormwater charge is generally considered a fee for use of the stormwater system, not a tax. Two years ago, a federal law decreed that federal facilities like military bases, prisons, and office complexes must pay local stormwater fees. And although some jurisdictions do exempt schools from paying, that generally isn’t the case. In the midst of budget cuts, the school districts say they can’t afford the fees. Long Beach Unified School District, for example, is expected to owe about $700,000 a year, or the equivalent of salaries and benefits for seven teachers. Many stormwater management programs offer credits to property owners who install BMPs or retain runoff on their property, and the county says this is a possibility for the school districts; they may even get credit for providing environmental education. Some of the 800 schools within the Los Angeles Unified School District—particularly newer schools—have rain gardens or other BMPs, and there is an ongoing effort to replace easy-to-maintain asphalt lots and playgrounds with green space, which would also reduce the fees. [text_ad]