Barcode sticker fees to fund 24/7/365 patrol
Dec 27, 2024 12:38PM ● By Gail Bullen, River Valley Times Reporter
Increased fees for barcode stickers that Rancho Murieta residents use to enter the gates are intended to fund increased security. Photo by Gail Bullen
RANCHO MURIETA, CA (MPG) - Increased barcode sticker fees and a reinstatement of 24/7/365 patrols were different sides of the same coin when the Rancho Murieta Community Services District Board discussed both at its Dec. 18 meeting.
Director of Finance and Administration Mark Matulich told the board that the Security Department is expected to resume 24/7 patrols starting Jan. 5, staffed by four community services officers and an administrative sergeant. Despite reduced security funding in the current and previous fiscal year budgets, the Community Services District has maintained full coverage at both gates.
However, full patrol funding relied on an increase in barcode sticker fees, which Matulich proposed as part of an amended security budget at the November meeting. The one-time fee for a new car would rise from $10 to $25 and a $10 annual renewal fee per car would be added.
Although the board approved the amended security budget in November, which included additional income from barcode fees to fund another security position, implementing the fees requires a two-step ordinance adoption process at the December and January meetings.
Following the November meeting, the district published a public hearing notice regarding the barcode fee increase, prompting some residents to voice their objections on social media. In response, Director Stephen Booth explained the board’s rationale for the increase in a Dec. 6 Nextdoor post. Acknowledging the significant opposition, Booth stated he would request that the ordinance be tabled until budget discussions.
By the end of the board's discussion about the ordinance on Dec. 18, both Booth and Director Linda Butler, who had initially moved to table it, reconsidered their stance. Booth proposed that district staff create a supplemental information sheet to accompany the bills and be included in the Pipeline newsletter, providing a clearer explanation of the new fee, its purpose and how the revenue would be utilized.
Booth and Butler joined the other board members in approving the ordinance’s first reading, saying there was sufficient time to communicate with the public before the final decision. Booth noted that the board would revisit the ordinance at its Jan. 15 meeting.
“If those communications aren’t completed, we can vote it down at that point, although hopefully, that won’t be necessary,” Booth said.
A more detailed story about full security coverage and the board's discussion of the barcode fee sticker ordinance will be featured in the Jan. 10 print edition of the River Valley Times.
The board addressed numerous other topics during the four-hour meeting, which will be covered in a separate story in the print edition. Highlights included a presentation of petitions calling for a water moratorium, a review of the district’s major accomplishments over the past year, and a report on reaching a settlement with Sacramento County regarding violations involving chlorine gas.