I read the Kern County Grand Jury’s report on the Rand Communities Water District, and I have to say the district needs to get its act together.
As I read through the findings and recommendations, one question still remains in my mind. Has the district ever conducted a cost-of-service study?
With such a study, the water district can find out the cost of providing water service to its customers.
I went to the Indian Wells Valley Water District website, and I read the rate study that was released in October.
The report stated, “The purpose of a cost-of-service allocation is to determine the cost of providing water service so that the proposed rate structure is aligned with those costs. This study employed well-established industry practices for these types of studies as recognized by the American Water Works Association and other accepted industry practices.”
This is what RCWD needs to do. It needs to find out the cost of not only pumping water, it also needs to find out the cost of treatment, and it needs to project capital-improvement costs to replace aging infrastructure.
As I understand it, by law, since RCWD is a public agency, it can only charge what it costs to provide the service. I hope RCWD can comply with the Grand Jury’s recommendations and avoid possible receivership.
It also needs a website.
December 8, 2018
Ridgecrest Daily Independent
By John V. Clani
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