10-11-2011 CC RPT 27 - Laserfiche WebLink

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rf I _:,Y OF 1EKDE City Council Memorandum Cate of 1rts & Innovation TO: HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL DATE: OCTOBER 11, 2011 FROM: PUBLIC UTILITIES DEPARTMENT ITEM NO: 27 WARDS: ALL SUBJECT: LOW INCOME ASSISTANCE —SHARING HOUSEHOLDS ASSIST RIVERSIDE'S ENERGY (SHARE) PROGRAM CONTRACT AMENDMENT ISSUE That the City Council consider approval of the Eleventh Amendment to Sharing Households Assist Riverside's Energy (SHARE) Agreement with the County of Riverside. RECOMMENDATIONS That the City Council: Approve an Eleventh Amendment to the SHARE Agreement with the County of Riverside Department of Public Social Services — Department of Community Action (County) to extend the SHARE program from July 1, 2011 through June 30, 2012 in the amount of $1.9 million; and 2. Authorize the City Manager, or his designee, to approve payments up to 25 percent, or $475,000, above the SHARE Agreement amount if allocated funds are depleted before June 30, 2012. BOARD RECOMMENDATION On September 16, 2011, the Board of the Public Utilities unanimously approved the request for an Eleventh Amendment to the SHARE Agreement and to approve payments up to 25 percent above the SHARE Agreement amount. BACKGROUND The SHARE program, established in 1989, is a Riverside Public Utilities (RPU) Public Benefit program that provides low- income residents with utility bill assistance. Originally supported by direct customer contributions, in 1999 under the guidelines of Assembly Bill (AB) 1890, which authorizes local utilities to spend Public Benefits Charge funds for low- income assistance, Public Benefits funds were added to support the electric portion of the program. On July 1, 1999, the City of Riverside entered into an Agreement with the County to administer the program. The original Agreement has been extended 10 times as the program has been working effectively, and the program has assisted approximately 57,000 residential customers. 27 -1