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Within four months, District has completed 66% of recommendations
Commerce, CA – In less than four months the Central Basin Municipal Water District has completed two-thirds of the recommendations provided by the State Auditor. This progress is in advance of the timelines outlined by the State Auditor. These reforms include: updating policies for competitive bidding and sole source contracts; strengthening its policies for the use of public funds and meal reimbursements; and requiring quarterly reporting of expenditures.
The Board of Directors voted to limit sole source contracts to emergency circumstances or circumstances in which only one vendor can meet the District’s needs. Additionally, the Board of Directors addressed the State Auditor’s recommendation on competitive bidding by revising its policies to require a rebid of contracts if the services significantly change.
The Board of Directors also voted for policies that provide more guidance on the necessary use of public funds. Other Board action includes the adoption of a policy that would prohibit meal reimbursements for meetings for third parties or for meetings that take place in the local area and involve only District representatives or its contractors. With respect to financial transparency and reporting, the District already provides monthly reports on expenditures, a practice that exceeds the quarterly reporting recommendation by the Auditor.
“The Audit provided valuable insight into how we could improve governance, financial stability, operations and transparency at the District,” said Central Basin General Manager Kevin Hunt. “For these reasons we have acted on the recommendations with the highest level of urgency and in advance of the State Auditor’s timelines.”
For more information on the actions Central Basin has taken to move forward, visit www.centralbasin.org.
