May 26, 2017
FYs 2018 & 2019
Recommended Budget
Water Authority Recommends $1.6 Billion Budget for Fiscal Years 2018 and 2019
 
The Water Authority's general manager on May 25 recommended a $1.6 billion budget for fiscal years 2018 and 2019, up 2 percent from the current two-year budget due largely to increasing costs of water supplies and treatment.

The recommended budget holds expenses in check as the Water Authority continues its transition from building infrastructure to maintaining facilities, and it enables the agency to continue to make prudent investments to protect and maximize the value of the region's water supplies and infrastructure. More than 90 percent of the recommended budget is for the purchase and treatment of water as well as building or financing infrastructure.
 
All American Canal

Water Authority Proposes 3.7 Percent Rate Increases for 2018
 
The Water Authority on May 18 announced that it will recommend increasing rates charged to its member agencies by 3.7 percent for both untreated and treated water in calendar year 2018, mostly because of higher rates and charges from the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California.

The proposed rate increases are the smallest since 2014 and are in line with Water Authority projections. Approximately 56 percent of the overall increase is driven by rising costs from MWD, which increased its base supply rates and also raised its costs for transporting the Water Authority's independent supplies of Colorado River water.

TOV Solar Panels
Water Authority Awarded $1 Million Incentive to Deploy Clean Energy Storage Project
 
The Water Authority has received a $1 million incentive from the California Public Utilities Commission to build and deploy intelligent energy storage that will save ratepayers money and stretch the energy output potential of solar panels already installed at the Water Authority's Twin Oaks Valley Water Treatment Plant.

The energy storage project, through an agreement with Santa Clara-based Green Charge, is expected to save the Water Authority nearly $100,000 per year in energy costs by using industrial-sized batteries to maximize the value of energy generated at the treatment plant. Installing batteries will help the Water Authority store low-cost power - either excess solar energy or retail energy purchased during off-peak hours - for later use during high-demand periods.

For the Record: Water Authority Corrects U-T Story
 
Water Authority General Counsel Mark Hattam submitted the following letter to the editor of The San Diego Union-Tribune on May 23 to correct misperceptions created by the paper's reporting.
 
The U-T's print-edition version of a story ("Attorney: Agency's Meetings Must be Open," May 18) omitted critical context that may give readers a false impression about compensation for San Diego County Water Authority Board members.
 
The online version of the story said directors on the agency's 36-member Board were collectively paid more than $80,000 in per diems for participating in certain agency meetings in 2016. The word "collectively" was not in the print version, leaving some readers to erroneously believe that individual board members collected more than $80,000 annually.
 
State law sets limits on the ability of special district board members to collect payments for participating in agency meetings, and it would be impossible for a Water Authority director to earn anything close to $80,000 a year. In fact, the average per diem payments to Water Authority Board members in 2016 was less than $6,100. 
Tips for a WaterSmart Summer

Everyone is headed to the beach or the backyard barbeque this weekend to celebrate the unofficial start of summer - the first drought-free summer in years. But the lack of emergency water-use regulations isn't an excuse to cut loose with the hose when the heat rises. In fact, continuing to Live WaterSmart no matter the weather is a hallmark of the San Diego lifestyle. Here are a few easy tips:
  1. Drink responsibly. Keep drinking water in your refrigerator to avoid running tap water to cool it. Use refillable water bottles instead of buying disposable plastic bottles. 
  2. Put a lid on it. Pool and spa covers reduce evaporation, lower pool heating costs and keep dirt and other debris out of the pool.  
  3. Maintain your mulch. Keeping a three-inch layer of mulch around trees and plants reduces runoff, helps control weeds and protects soil from direct sunlight and evaporation. Keep mulch about six inches away from plant stems and tree trunks.
  Click here for more tips and resources.
San Vicente Dam near Lakeside is a key component of the Water Authority's Emergency & Carryover Storage Project
Did you See?

The Times of San Diego published an opinion article highlighting regional infrastructure investments by the Water Authority and the City of San Diego during Infrastructure Week.

"The water authority's multi-billion dollar capital improvement program launched in 1989 represented a significant but very important investment in water reliability," the May 17 article states. "A major component of the program was the Emergency Carryover and Storage Project, which is a system of new and expanded reservoirs, pipelines and other facilities that work together to store and move water around the county in the event of an interruption in imported water deliveries."

Click here to read more.
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