Monday, 05 October 2015 19:15
AWA Rejects Flawed Petition From Ratepayers Protection Alliance
(Sutter Creek) The Amador Water Agency has notified proponents of a referendum of the legal insufficiency of their petition, according to a letter released yesterday from the Water Agency to the Ratepayers Protection Alliance (RPA). As a result, the Agency will not rescind recently-approved drought rates on water service, nor will it put the issue up for a county-wide vote.
The letter formally denies certification of the referendum, advises the RPA that this referendum will not be placed on the ballot for a county-wide election, and states the reasons for rejection. The letter also makes clear that a referendum cannot require the AWA Board of Directors to rescind the temporary drought surcharge if doing so would cripple the Water Agency’s ability to collect sufficient revenues to provide water service to its 10,000 Amador County customers.
Since Governor Brown’s water conservation order went into effect, AWA has seen a 33 percent drop in water sales which translates into an estimated loss of over $1.2 million per year needed to provide safe, reliable water for homes, businesses and fire protection.
The RPA has demanded that the Water Agency rescind a July 21, 2015 resolution that put the temporary drought surcharge and new water rate structure in place, and collected signatures on a petition for a county-wide vote on the matter.
“Operating the county’s water systems with a 33 percent drop in sales is simply not sustainable. The temporary drought rates are helping to keep the systems maintained until the conservation order is lifted,” said AWA General Manager Gene Mancebo.
About 1% of AWA customers objected to the drought charge and new water rate structure under the state’s Prop. 218 notification process. The drought rate is structured so that customers who conserve water will have very little increase in their monthly water cost over pre-drought water bills.
Today’s letter to the RPA from AWA Clerk of the Board Cris Thompson rejects the RPA’s petition due to legal errors but Mancebo says the question goes beyond legal details.
“AWA has a responsibility to provide essential health and safety services to the community – and we will fight anything that jeopardizes our ability to serve our customers with clean, safe water and provide fire protection,” Mancebo said.
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