Ratepayer Protection Alliance - The Watchdog

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IN THIS ISSUE:
A Victory for Sutter Creek Residents

AWA Directors Approve Loans & Audit with Incomplete Financial Information

AWA Approves Another GSL Funding Plan

$20,000 More for AWA Rate Study

About RPA
Ratepayer Protection Alliance (RPA) was formed to support the rights of the people of Amador County against unfair rate increases, which are usually used to subsidize special interests. Recently, RPA has assisted citizens who successfully protested several water rate increases. RPA is committed to ensuring that water, wastewater and garbage rates in Amador County are justified, and do not unfairly burden local residents.

Donations
RPA works hard to minimize costs of informing the public of unfair rate increases. RPA operates on the donated time of volunteers and no one is paid for their efforts. Donations for postage costs can be sent to:
Ratepayer Protection Alliance
P.O. Box 51
Pine Grove CA 95665

A Victory for Sutter Creek Residents

Sutter Creek residents and property owners stood up to a 41% garbage rate increase and convinced the City Council to limit the increase to 5.3%. After the City received 722 signed protests against the garbage rate increases on March 18th, City attorney Derrick Cole brought his results from counting the protests back to the Council. The City Council decided to revisit future rate increases as they come.

AWA Directors Approve Loans & Audit with Incomplete Financial Information

At their April 5 special meeting, the AWA Board accepted the 2010/2011 audit prepared by Leaf and Cole, LLP. It has been more than a year since the same audit failed public scrutiny. The audit had to be reworked when the public pointed out enormous discrepancies and that AWA had commingled restricted funds with other funds.

The 2010/2011 audit that Leaf and Cole presented also had financial information for 2009/2010. 41 of those 2009/2010 numbers did not agree with the Leaf and Cole audit that was accepted for 2009/2010. AWA and Leaf and Cole did not explain why the numbers disagreed.

AWA Approves Another GSL Funding Plan

After spending more than $100,000 on consultants and an undisclosed amount on staff and attorney time, AWA has abandoned their plan for a Community Facilities District to fund the Gravity Supply Line. The latest plan that AWA has concocted to fund the GSL uses local taxpayer funds to front new development’s share of the project cost. Up until now, the taxes have been used for other systems within AWA. The new plan will divert 70% of those taxes to the GSL loan payments, leaving a hole in the finances for the other systems.

$20,000 More for AWA Rate Study

Because of changes in the GSL financing plan and newly approved inter-agency loans, AWA’s system wide rate study will need to be reworked by Reed and Associates to the tune of an additional $20,000. The original cost of the study started at $120,000. An additional $15,000 was added later. The latest increase brings Reed’s total cost to $155,000. There is no guarantee it ends there…

Please forward this message to others in Amador County and help us get the word out!

Visit us on the web: www.amadorwatchdog.org
Our mailing address is: Ratepayer Protection Alliance, P.O. Box 51, Pine Grove CA 95665
Our telephone: 209-223-0993

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