Amador County – The Amador Water Agency Board of Directors introduced an ordinance Thursday that would put in place policies and procedures toward establishing a voluntary Community Facilities District in the Amador Water System.

The board waived the first reading of the ordinance, to be considered for approval April 26. AWA Counsel Stephen Kronick said the ordinance is the precursor to the formation of the Facilities District.

The ordinance was “intended to establish certain policies and procedures in furtherance of the formation of the Amador Water System Community Facilities District,” a voluntary funding mechanism in which landowners, would pay special taxes toward the debt of the Amador Transmission Pipeline and also for incremental capacity improvements at Tanner water treatment plant and Ione water treatment plant.

AWA General Manager Gene Mancebo said the board directed staff to seek incremental increases to water plant capacity, due to the economic downturn, to avoid a more costly expansion at Tanner. He said the Facilities District is voluntary. Kronick said attorneys for landowners gave comments about the ordinance, and the ordinance was pulled from a February agenda. He said the board had before it the ordinance as revised according to those comments.

Mancebo said there may be more phases to the CFD projects, but this phase was to fund the Amador Transmission Pipeline’s debt service for the term of its 2006 bonds, and to finance incremental expansion of water treatment plants.

Kronick said the introduction of the ordinance was the precursor to forming the CFD, and landowners involved in the CFD will be by consent. There would be no election, but the landowners will have to sign a petition to participate. He said the CFD would enact special taxes, and participants won’t be denied service if they are paying the special taxes.

Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.