News Archive On Wednesday, March 14, 2012, Jackson residents Ken Perano and Ken Berry filed a lawsuit in Amador County Superior Court against the Amador Water Agency (AWA). The suit alleges that the AWA has violated Government Code section 66013 by failing to issue accurate and timely reports required by law. “We want to hold AWA accountable for telling people where their money is going, as required by state law,” said Ken Perano. More...

AWA is not properly and legally accounting for public funds

AWA is not compliant with Government Code 66013 that restricts the use of participation fees to the specific uses for which the funds were collected. (Participation fees are collected when a new customer connects to the system). AWA does not keep proper records of the specific purpose for which its fees are collected. Therefore, there is no way to know whether the fees have been used for the proper purpose. Also, some of the participation fee funds have been used to fund debt in other systems within AWA.

These are just some of the examples of AWA not properly and legally accounting for public funds. This is not in the public’s best interest and clearly violates AWA’s vision statement. For years, ratepayer money was spent without informing them, and funds in restricted accounts on separate systems were used to fund those debts. Because the funds were used for purposes other than those for which they were collected, ratepayers have not been reimbursed for the assets that they have purchased over the years. These accounting practices are costing the public greatly and the Agency is failing in its service to the public.