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Page 5 of 7 <br />City Council in 2024, consistent with the maximum income and rent limit for the Pleasanton <br />Homeownership Assistance Program (PHAP). This will expand eligibility beyond the lower <br />PG&E CARE threshold. This will be a self-certification process. <br /> <br />Table 4. Comparison of Household Income Eligibility Limits <br /> <br />6. Limit the maximum General Fund contribution to the utility discount program to $425,000 <br />annually currently allocated in the City's approved budget. This amount generally corresponds <br />to the discount program expenditure for FY 2023/24, which data was available at the time of <br />budget development. <br /> <br />Key Decisions Discussions <br />There are several key decisions requiring Council input and discussion: <br /> <br />1. Remove Income-based Eligibility for Senior Discount: As an alternative, staff could <br />leave the senior discount program unchanged, with a 20 percent discount based on the age of <br />customers who qualify as a “senior” (age 65 or older), regardless of need or income level. The <br />senior discount program currently has approximately 3,200 enrolled customers and costs the <br />General Fund approximately $450,000 in FY 2024/2025, with this amount expected to <br />increase as cost-of-living and water rates go up over time. Given the expanded eligibility <br />criteria for the low-income program to reflect the higher cost of living in Pleasanton, leaving <br />the senior discount program unchanged will likely cause the program to reach the cap on the <br />General Fund contribution much sooner, restricting access and availability for lower income <br />households with higher needs. This alternative would require a reallocation of General Funds <br />from another area to fund the additional cost. <br /> <br />2. Increase the AMI Limit from 80 percent (low-income) to 100 percent (median income) <br />of Household Income: Another alternative is to retain the income-based eligibility <br />requirement for the senior discount programs, but increase the household income eligibility to <br />100 percent of AMI (median income) or 120 percent AMI (moderate income). This would <br />broaden the program eligibility and minimize the income on senior households that may <br />become ineligible under the new requirements. However, this alternative would also require a <br />reallocation of General Funds from another area to fund the additional cost. For reference, for <br />a 2-person household, the maximum allowable income at 100 percent AMI (median income) is <br />$124,550, and at 120 percent AMI (moderate income) is $149,500. <br /> <br />Page 178 of 264