[GPSCC-chat] Water Rates and back room deals

[Wes Rolley]

I have written several posts recently about the Jerry Brown Tunnel and 
their potential to cost the public to service the Big Ag interests in 
the Westlands Irrigation District..  There is now a new reason to be 
concerned about water rates and the cost of water to our city.  
Basically, our water is procured from the Santa Clara Valley Water 
District, whether directly from Anderson Lake system or provided by 
ground water recharge.  Some of that water comes from San Luis reservoir 
operated by the San Luis Delta Mendota Water Authority.  Our Water 
District has 2 Directors on the Water Authority's board.

Thursday, at 10:00 AM, the San Luis Delta Mendota water Authority board 
will hold a meeting at the Water District's headquarters in San Jose.  
At the conclusion of the public agenda for that meeting, they will go 
into closed session and, among other items, discuss the Delta Tunnels. 
The major user of Water Authority water is the Westlands Irrigation 
District.  Westlands has recently been fined by the SEC for using "Enron 
style accounting" to shore up their bond ratings.  It seems pretty clear 
that the Water Authority is trying to get urban rate payers to pay a 
larger percentage of the cost of the tunnel project, even though that 
project will not add one drop of water to our reserves. But, the cost 
will end up being passed on to the Water District, to our communities 
and to us as ratepayers.

We should all be following this closely and letting OUR Water District 
know that this is not the way to do business, in closed sessions where 
they figure out how to keep from being sued, which the Howard Javis 
Taxpayer Assn. has threatened to do.  If anyone is free on Thursday 
Morning, I would ask that you show up at the Water District HQ at 10:00 
to express your
-- 
"Anytime you have an opportunity to make things better and you don't, 
then you are wasting your time on this Earth" - /Roberto Clemente/
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