In 1995, the Rainbow Municipal Water District Board of Directors adopted Ordinance 95-1 that put certain restrictions on the District’s ability to participate in capital markets.  In the 23 years since that time, changes in California statutes and several precedents established in the courts have made certain provisions of Ordinance 95-1 unlawful.  

The general legal concept is that the Board of Directors from over 20 years ago cannot tie the hands of a future duly elected Board of Directors.  Such restrictions eliminate the power of our constituents to elect Board members to take actions based on changing conditions.

Now the District is facing significant challenges related to renewal and replacement of aging infrastructure.   The costs to deal with these challenges are significant and the Board of Directors has determined that to keep water rates as low as possible, participation in capital markets can help spread costs over time rather than having to amass funds from rates over short periods.  

The Board will be considering the repeal of Ordinance 95-1 at the September 18, 2018 and October 23, 2018 Regular Board meetings.  More information about our board meeting dates and time is available on our website.

Your input is valuable, so please come to one of these meetings or send us your thoughts through the “Contact Us” tool on our website.