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What is a Street Lighting Maintenance District?
A Street Lighting Maintenance District is responsible for maintaining the street lights within a designated area.
Information on Sacramento County Street Lighting Maintenance District
Street and highway safety lighting services are provided in Sacramento County by
County Service Area No. 1, a dependent special district governed by the Board of
Supervisors. The enabling legislation for County Service Areas is contained in
Government Code Section 25210.1 et seq.
County Service Area No. 1 was formed in 1986 to consolidate all street and highway
safety lighting services into one countywide district and to provide a financing
mechanism for the portion of those services not otherwise financed by property taxes. In
1987 five previously existing street lighting maintenance districts (Clampett Tract
Lighting Maintenance District, Municipal Street Lighting Maintenance District No. 1,
Municipal Street Lighting Maintenance District No. 2, Sacramento County Street
Lighting Maintenance and Hood Street Lighting Maintenance District) were
included in County Service Area No. 1 and dissolved on April 28, 1987. The boundaries
of County Service Area No. 1 include all of the unincorporated territory of the County of
Sacramento and the City of Rancho Cordova.
Services provided by County Service Area No. 1 are acquisition, construction,
replacement, maintenance, and repair of street or highway lighting systems, including
land, easements and rights-of-way. These services are provided under the jurisdiction of
the Department of Public Works, and are financed by property taxes, other revenues, and
user service charges. Service chares are applied to properties in proportion to the benefits
received. Service charges for neighborhood street lighting are allocated to benefiting
properties based on real property zoning and use characteristics, as well as the portion of
total costs not off-set by other financing sources. Street light service charges take several
forms: a flat rate for single family residential properties receiving similar benefits; a rate
for commercial properties based on front footage; and no charge for agricultural
properties and properties not receiving benefits. Service charges for highway safety
lighting (generally, intersection lighting on major streets) are allocated equally to all
properties based on the total cost of providing the service.
County Service Area No. 1 supports lights installed by the County, dependent special
districts, Community Development Block Grant programs, private developers who
dedicate the improvements to the County, and a small number of lights owned by the
Sacramento Municipal Utility District and Pacific Gas and Electric Company. It does not
support lights installed, maintained and operated by independent park and recreation
districts, community service districts, and others which do not fall under the jurisdiction
of the Department of Public Works.
Sacramento County Street Lighting Maintenance District
