The City of Coachella recently issued debt relief to nearly 500 customers in the Coachella Water Authority as part of over $203,000 awarded to them through the Arrearages Program from the California Water Resources Control Board. Debt relief was provided for eligible accounts who fell 60 days or more behind between March 4, 2020 and June 15, 2021.
“Our focus remains the wellbeing and stability of our residents and business owners, and our goal is to give them as much of a fresh start as we can,” said Coachella Mayor Steven Hernandez. “The pandemic created hardships for many, and we continue to take advantage of resources for our community as they come available.”
The California Water and Wastewater Arrearage Payment Program allocated a total of $985 million in federal funding through January 31, 2022. Funding was based on meeting 100% of reporter drinking water arrearages and up to 3% in administrative costs for community water systems.
“The City really appreciates implementation of the arrearages program which helped keep our residents from paying late fees and having their service disconnected. It made an unfortunate situation so much more manageable for everyone,” stated Mayor Pro Tem Josie Gonzalez.
ABOUT THE CITY OF COACHELLA
The City of Coachella was incorporated in 1946 and is a 29-square mile municipality of approximately 41,941 residents located in eastern Riverside County, in a region collectively known as the Coachella Valley in Southern California. Coachella is about 97 miles north of the U.S.-Mexico border and about 1.5 hours from Los Angeles. For more information, please visit the City’s website: www.coachella.org