Report 2018-110 Recommendation 7 Responses

Report 2018-110: City of Lincoln: Financial Mismanagement, Insufficient Accountability, and Lax Oversight Threaten the City's Stability (Release Date: March 2019)

Recommendation #7 To: Lincoln, City of

Lincoln should immediately commence a fee study that ensures its fees for water capacity are commensurate with the costs of current and planned future water capacity needs. To the extent that Lincoln has previously overcharged for water capacity fees, it should develop a plan to provide equitable consideration to those who overpaid such fees, and it should eliminate any unnecessary surplus in the water connections fund.

1-Year Agency Response

The water connection fee study and the proposed plan to provide equitable consideration to those that overpaid fees was been completed and was adopted by City Council on January 28, 2020, and went into effect 30days later. The fund balance will be used over a 10-year period to reduce the capital charge for the water rates.

California State Auditor's Assessment of 1-Year Status: Fully Implemented

6-Month Agency Response

The draft water connection fee study and the proposed plan to provide equitable consideration to those that overpaid fees has been completed and the preliminary results were presented to City Council on August 7, 2019. The proposed fees and the plan to address the surplus in the water connections fund will formally be presented to City Council on October 8, 2019.

California State Auditor's Assessment of 6-Month Status: Pending

60-Day Agency Response

The fee study to establish fees for water capacity purchases is underway. Upon completion of the fee study, equitable consideration of overcharges will be provided by the City Council.

California State Auditor's Assessment of 60-Day Status: Pending

All Recommendations in 2018-110

Agency responses received are posted verbatim.