Sewer rates in Fremont, Newark, and Union City will be going up by 45 percent over the next five years after the Union Sanitary District board approved the increases by a unanimous vote at its meeting Monday.

The increases are the highest annual rate hikes approved by the district over the past two decades, according to district figures reviewed by this news agency.

In light of the uncertainty caused by the coronavirus pandemic, the board also directed staff to draw up a resolution for a deferral program, which would put off the collection of the increases for all residential customers until November 2021. The board is expected to finalize the approval of that program at its next meeting.

Some people who submitted comments to the district during the meeting said the board should have “more compassion” for people dealing with the effects of the pandemic, and should have either not approved the rates or put them off.