SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Sacramento Local Agency Formation Commissioners voted last Wednesday to give Del Paso Manor Water District 12 months to fix its infrastructure or face dissolution.
Del Paso Manor Water District supplies water to 1,864 residential connections according to county documents, all of whom could be left to help pay the district's estimated $52 million in infrastructure repairs.
The estimated $52 million in repairs is just a baseline cost, commissioners said, and the price to bring the water district back up to speed could be higher.
A 2021 grand jury report alleged the water district was flooded with public safety dangers and needed to make tens of millions of dollars in repairs.
The State of California Water Resources Board Division of Drinking Water also cited the water district for a violation for failing to let customers know of a contaminated well.
"Commissioners took this action because the consumers deserve clean, affordable water service at this district, and they're not getting it, certainly not in the near future," said Sacramento Local Agency Formation Commission executive officer José C. Henríquez. "Taken as a whole, the commission felt the preponderance of evidence was overwhelming."
He says if the Del Paso Manor Water District is faced with dissolution, the district can request another water agency take over the service and its residents.
Response from Del Paso Manor Water District
The district is eligible for at least $111 million in California state grants and principal forgiveness funding if the district consolidates with another water agency, something it considered as recently as last year, according to county documents.
Such state funding would alleviate Del Paso Manor Water District customers from having to foot the infrastructure bill.
District director Robert Matteoli told county commissioners Wednesday he wasn't given a chance to voice his concerns and he wanted the vote pushed back.
But Henríquez says he received no further questions or concerns from the water district when they presented the same information to them earlier last month.
"This information has been out there. The presentation all comes from information that has been out there on the street publicly for a long time," Henríquez said. "None of this information should be new."
Sacramento County Supervisor Rich Desmond also says the community has been aware of concerns about the water district's infrastructure since the 2021 grand jury report.
District General Manager Adam Coyan said their water well casing is past its usable life and could fail at any time.
"Del Paso Manor Water District's mission is to provide safe drinking water in accordance with California and federal regulations, and to maintain a reliable water supply for consumption and fire protection," Coyan said Wednesday. "Currently, without the inner ties of SSWD, we are incapable of meeting that goal."
He also commended the water district board for passing a rate increase to address the needs of the water district.
"It's my hope that if the resolution of dissolution is passed tonight, that [the board members] step up once again and voluntarily enter into discussions with SSWD and reorganize with SSWD prior to the remediation period," Coyan said.
