2009 California Government Code - Section 38900-38902 :: Chapter 11. Sewers Generally

38900.  A city legislative body may construct, establish, and
maintain drains and sewers.

38901.  A city may reclaim public and private lands therein by
levees, bulkheads, breakwaters, fills, embankments, basins, drains,
canals, excavations, sluices, pipes, watergates, pumping plants, and
all works and structures useful therefor. This work is a local
improvement and a municipal affair. The costs of reclamation shall be
borne solely by the lands reclaimed.
   This section shall not be construed as affecting any public
district or public entity now or hereafter established and having
similar powers.

38902.  A city may, pursuant to the notice, protest, and hearing
procedures in Section 53753, fix an annual sewer service standby or
immediate availability charge to be applied on an area or frontage or
parcel basis, or a combination thereof, within the city to be
charged to such areas to which sewer service is made available for
any purpose by the city, whether the sewer service is actually used
or not. If the procedures set forth in this section as it read at the
time a standby charge was established were followed, the city
council may, by resolution, continue the charge pursuant to this
section in successive years at the same rate. If new, increased, or
extended assessments are proposed, the city council shall comply with
the notice, protest, and hearing procedures in Section 53753. The
city may establish schedules varying such charge according to the
land uses and the degree of availability or quantity of use of such
sewer service to the affected lands, and may restrict such charge to
lands lying within one or more zones or areas of benefits established
within such city.
   The city may collect the standby or availability charge by billing
the charged lands on a fiscal year basis or by other means
available.
   The city may collect the standby or availability charge as a part
of the annual general county tax bill provided the city furnishes in
writing to the board of supervisors and to the county auditor the
description of each parcel for which a charge is to be billed
together with the amount of the charge applicable to each parcel in
sufficient time to meet the schedule established by the county for
inclusion of such items on the county general tax bill. The parcel
description may be the parcel number assigned by the county assessor
to the parcel. In such case, the standby or availability charge shall
become a lien against the parcel of land to which it is charged in
the same manner as the county general taxes. Penalties may be
collected for late payment of the standby or availability charge or
the amount thereof unpaid in the manner and at the same rates as that
applicable for late payment or the amount thereof unpaid of county
general taxes.
   If the city collects standby charges through the county general
tax bill, the amount of the standby charge and any applicable penalty
shall be stated on the tax bill separately from all other taxes, if
practicable.