Discontinuation of Water Service Policy - English

Water service may be discontinued if the current water bill or alternative payment arrangement is delinquent for at least 60 days.

A written notice will be provided to the customer of record at least 14 days prior to discontinuation of water service.

Customers meeting specified medical and financial hardship requirements will not be discontinued, and can have a normal bill extended for up to 12 months, if all the following conditions are met:

• Customer or anyone residing at the property must submit a certification from their primary care provider that discontinuation of residential water service would be life threating or pose a serious threat to the health and safety of a resident of the premises where residential service is provided.
• Customer or anyone residing at the property must demonstrate that they are financially unable to pay within the billing cycle. This can be done by providing proof that they are a recipient of CalWORKS, Calfresh, Medi-Cal, SSI/SSSP, general assistance, or California Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children, OR the customer declares that they are 200% below Federal poverty level.
• Customer must be willing to enter into a Hardship Payment Agreement.

Customers meeting above requirements may provide the District with appropriate documentation to demonstrate specified medical and economic hardship and enter into a Hardship Payment Agreement.  The Customer will be required to demonstrate eligibility for medical and financial hardship on an annual basis.

The District may discontinue water service if a customer granted a Hardship Payment Agreement fails to do any of the following for 60 days or more: (a) pay any amount under a Hardship Payment Agreement or (b) pay the current charges for water service.  The District will post a final notice of intent to discontinue service in a prominent and conspicuous location at the service address at least five business days prior to discontinuation of service. The final notice will not entitle the customer to investigation or review by the District.

In the event of non-payment of a water bill by an Owner for a residence that receives individually metered residential water service, a Tenant may request to become the customer of record to avoid discontinuation of water service. In order to transfer service into Tenant’s name, the Owner will be required to complete and sign the District’s form of authorization providing approval to transfer into Tenant(s) name within 30 days.  Should the District not receive the form of authorization within 30 days, the Tenant may continue to pay the Owner’s water bill in order to avoid discontinuation.  In the event the Tenant cannot secure the Owner’s written authorization within 30 days, the Tenant may request the District to provide to Tenant, duplicate copies of the Owner’s water bills for the individually metered residential water service, to facilitate the Tenant’s ability to timely pay water bills accruing over time, which payments shall be treated by District as paid on behalf of Owner, until formal transfer is complete.  Notwithstanding any such duplicate water bills, or payments accepted by District from Tenant, the Owner retains full responsibility for payment of any unpaid water bills and all subsequent charges to the property pursuant to California Water Code Section 25806.

If a customer disputes an unpaid water bill that is beyond the authority of the Customer Service Supervisor to resolve, the Customer Service Supervisor may defer the discontinuation of water service until the dispute can be reviewed by the General Manager and/or brought before the Board for final resolution.  The dispute will not be referred to the General Manager or scheduled for consideration by the Board until the customer pays a reasonable portion of the disputed water bill.  The reasonable portion of the disputed bill will be based on the customer’s account history.

The customer shall submit a written request of appeal to the Board Secretary to have his or her dispute considered as an item for discussion at an upcoming Board meeting, which would allow the Board to hear the dispute and take action.  The written request of appeal shall include: 1) a description of the issue, 2) evidence supporting the claim, and 3) a request for resolution.

Water service shall not be discontinued pending an appeal.

Water service will be restored only upon payment of all delinquent charges and penalties.

La Póliza de Interrupción Del Servicio de Agua - Espanol 

停止供水政策 - 中文

Ngừng chính sách Dịch vụ nước - Tiếng Việt

Pagpapatuloy ng patakaran sa paglilingkod sa tubig -Taglog

수도 서비스 중단 정책 - 한국어

Vista Irrigation District had 547 accounts disconnected due to non-payment in 2023.