Local Agency Formation Commission for Los Angeles County
Municipal Service Review
Request for Information Part III—Water Service
The Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCO) is conducting a municipal service review for local
agencies under its jurisdiction, pursuant to Government Code sections 56425 and 56430. A municipal
service review is a means for identifying and addressing the relationship between regional issues, goals and
objectives and various service options. In accordance with the law, the review shall include a written
statement of LAFCO’s determinations with respect to each of the following:
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4.
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6.
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infrastructure needs or deficiencies;
growth and population projections for the affected area;
financing constraints and opportunities;
cost avoidance opportunities;
opportunities for rate restructuring;
opportunities for shared facilities;
government structure options, including advantages and disadvantages of consolidation or
reorganization of service providers;
evaluation of management efficiencies; and
local accountability and governance.
In addition to meeting legal requirements, this data-gathering effort will benefit agencies in several ways:
 standardization and digitization (GIS) of maps, which LAFCO will make available to the local
agencies, and
 an opportunity for agencies to shape regional policy and plan for future growth.
In order to conduct the review, LAFCO requires various documents and information about your agency.
Certain information is needed more quickly than other information, and certain service reviews are being
staged with different timelines than others. Thus, LAFCO has established a three-part Request for
Information (RFI). Your agency has already responded to Parts I and II of this survey process with public
documents and agency-wide information. The remaining parts are:
Part III:
Specific service questions
Due four weeks after issuance
Part III requests information on each service that is provided by your agency and
within the scope of the service reviews. There is a separate Part III RFI for each
service (fire protection, water service, law enforcement, etc.). For agencies being
reviewed on expedited schedules, the Part III questions may be answered through an
expedited interview process.
Multi-service agencies (like cities) should route Part III questions to the appropriate staff person for
completion. RFI Part IV will be tailored to those agencies or services requiring in-depth service reviews,
and may be distributed to your agency after completion of the initial service reviews. LAFCO staff and/or
its consultants may contact your agency occasionally by telephone to ask clarifying questions about the
information provided. LAFCO staff and consultants will make every effort to minimize the burden of its
requests and interviews on your agency.
If you have questions or need assistance completing this questionnaire, please contact Ms. Serafina
Grossman, Los Angeles LAFCO Government Analyst at 818-254-2454.
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Please address or deliver your responses to:
Los Angeles Local Agency Formation Commission
700 North Central Avenue, Suite 350
Glendale, CA 91203
E-Mail Address: sgrossman@lalafco.org
This Request for Information is designed for local agencies with differing service obligations,
circumstances and expansion opportunities. To assist you in responding to the RFI, there are several
definitions that may prove helpful:
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Boundaries mean the current legal boundaries of the local agency.
Sphere of Influence (SOI) is the LAFCO adopted plan for the probable physical boundary and
ultimate service area of the local agency. It is a plan for the agencies future boundaries and service
area.
Annexable Expansion Area is the area outside the agency’s current boundaries and within its
current sphere of influence.
Area outside SOI is an area outside the agency boundary and outside the current sphere of
influence.
Coterminous boundaries are boundaries where spheres of influence and agency boundaries are
identical.
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Local Agency Formation Commission for Los Angeles County
Municipal Service Review
Request for Information
Part III
Water Service
1. Agency Name:
2. Urban Water Management Plan: Provide your most recent plan.
 Already provided in response to RFI Part I
 Attached
 Exempt: agency has fewer than 3,000 customers and supplies fewer than 3,000 acre-feet.
3. Water Wholesaler: Is your agency a water wholesaler?
 Yes, our agency sells imported water to cities, mutual water companies, private companies
and/or investor-owned utilities.
 Yes, our agency sells groundwater to cities, mutual water companies, private companies
and/or investor-owned utilities.
 Yes, our agency replenishes groundwater basins with pumping rights held by cities, mutual
water companies, private companies and/or investor-owned utilities.
 No.
4. Out-of-Area Service: Are there geographic areas outside your boundaries for which you are
providing service?
 Yes. Provide map of wholesale service area. Provide reasons why your agency is serving
the areas outside its boundaries.
 No.
5. Joint/Reciprocal Service: Indicate whether there are geographic areas in other jurisdictions
which you are frequently called upon for water supply assistance. Describe these areas and
explain why your agency is often better situated to serve these areas outside your boundaries.
6. Does your agency deliver, supply, treat or replenish water at the wholesale or retail level?
 Yes
 No
7. List water retailers that provide service to customers within your agency’s boundaries.
 Franchise. This agency has franchise agreements with water retailers providing service
within our boundaries. List water retailers with franchise agreements.
 Other. Other water retailers (public or private) provide service within our agency
boundaries. List water retailers operating within your boundaries. Describe area(s), reasons
why another retailer is serving the area(s).
 None.
Part III–Water, Page 1
8. Connections: provide total number of water service connections by type for the following
areas:
Connections in Agency Boundaries
Domestic ______________
Reclaimed
______________
Agricultural______________
Other
______________
Connections Outside Agency Boundaries and Inside Sphere of Influence
Domestic ______________
Reclaimed
______________
Agricultural______________
Other
______________
Connections Outside Agency Boundaries and Outside Sphere of Influence
Domestic ______________
Reclaimed
______________
Agricultural______________
Other
______________
9. New Customers: For properties within your boundaries, describe process and requirements
for property owners that ask your agency to provide service. Indicate number of new hookups
by type for most recent year.
10. Connection Fees: Explain how connection fees are established, and which additional costs are
covered through connection fees or other levies on new customers. If existing customers
subsidize new capacity, explain.
11. Out-of-area Service Process: For properties in your annexable expansion area or in other
jurisdictions, describe process and requirements for property owners that ask your agency to
provide service.
12. Unserved Areas: Provide an agency policy or statement of disposition regarding responsibility
to reserve capacity for unserved property within agency boundaries and current estimates of
unserved property within current boundaries.
13. SOI Service: Are there habitable areas within the future growth area (i.e. annexable expansion
area) where your agency would have difficulty providing service or that would be particularly
expensive to service?
 Yes. Describe areas in future growth area that would be difficult to service if developed,
explain reasons, and indicate whether another service provider could better serve those
areas.
 No.
14. Service Capacity: Does your agency currently have the capacity to provide service to
development in your existing SOI boundary?
 Yes
 No. Explain capacity constraints and any plans for alleviating those constraints.
Part III–Water, Page 2
15. Water Quality: Has your agency exceeded state and federal drinking water quality maximum
contaminant levels in the last 5 years? If so, explain.
16. Water Treatment: Indicate how water treatment services are provided.
 Groundwater/Surface Water: this agency treats or hires a contractor to treat groundwater
and/or surface water.
Annual Amount Treated
_________________
Provider (if not direct):
_________________
Brief description of treatment process:
 Imported Water: this agency treats or hires a contractor to treat untreated imported water
Annual Amount Treated
_________________
Provider (if not direct):
_________________
Brief description of treatment process:
 Recycled Water: this agency produces recycled water
Annual Amount Produced
_________________
Provider (if not direct):
_________________
Brief description of treatment process:
 None: this agency retails pre-treated water. Skip to question 19.
 None: this agency sells untreated water. Skip to question 19.
17. Treatment Facilities: For each water treatment facility, provide the following information:
a. common name,
b. address,
c. purpose,
d. capacity and most recent year’s production
e. other uses or other agencies using the facility,
f. date built and condition of facility (good, fair or poor),
18. New Treatment Facilities: Is your agency planning or in the midst of constructing additional
water treatment facilities?
 Yes. Provide location, purpose, capacity, construction schedule, financing mechanism
and cost for each new facility. If you have already provided this information in the
Capital Improvement Plan (CIP), reference the CIP.
 No
19. Groundwater Pumping: Does your agency pump groundwater?
 Yes. Provide total amount extracted in 2002: ___________
 No, you may skip to question 24
Part III–Water, Page 3
20. Adjudicated Groundwater Basin: For each of the following adjudicated basins, provide
groundwater quantity you were entitled to extract in 2002.
Entitlement
Extracted
 Central Basin
 Main San Gabriel Basin
 Puente
 Raymond Basin
 Six Basins
 Upper Los Angeles River Area
 West Coast Basin
 None
21. Leased/Assigned Production Rights: Describe pumping rights leased from/or temporarily
assigned to other water providers.
22. Wells:
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
f.
For each well or pumping facility, provide the following information:
common name,
address,
purpose,
capacity and most recent year’s production
other uses or other agencies using the facility,
date built; condition of facility (good, fair or poor); contamination status
23. New Pumping Facilities: Is your agency planning or in the midst of constructing additional
wells or pumping facilities?
 Yes. Provide location, purpose, capacity, construction schedule, financing mechanism
and cost for each new facility. If you have already provided this information in the CIP,
reference the CIP.
 No
24. Groundwater Recharge: Does your agency recharge groundwater?
 Yes. Provide total amount recharged in 2002: ___________
 No, you may skip to question 28
25. Recharge by Groundwater Basin: For each of the following adjudicated basins, provide total
recharged quantity and total extractions in 2002.
Recharged
Extracted
Part III–Water, Page 4








Central Basin
Main San Gabriel Basin
Puente
Raymond Basin
Six Basins
Upper Los Angeles River Area
West Coast Basin
None
26. Recharge Facilities: For each recharge facility (spreading basins, replenishment pumping
facilities, monitoring facilities, and basin management facilities), provide the following
information:
a. common name,
b. address,
c. purpose,
d. capacity and most recent year’s capacity used
e. other uses or other agencies using the facility,
f. date built, and condition of facility (good, fair or poor),
27. New Recharge Facilities: Is your agency planning or in the midst of constructing additional
recharge facilities?
 Yes. Provide location, purpose, capacity, construction schedule, financing mechanism
and cost for each new facility. If you have already provided this information in the CIP,
reference the CIP.
 No
28. Storage: Does your agency have water storage facilities?
 Yes. Provide net change in stored amount for the last three years:
2000:
__________
2001:
__________
2002:
__________
 No, you may skip to question 31
29. Storage Facilities: For each storage facility, provide the following information:
a. common name,
b. address,
c. purpose,
d. capacity and most recent year’s capacity used
e. other uses or other agencies using the facility,
f. date built, and condition of facility (good, fair or poor),
30. New Storage Facilities: Is your agency planning or in the midst of constructing additional
storage facilities (e.g. reservoirs, man-made lakes, etc.)?
 Yes. Provide location, purpose, capacity, construction schedule, financing mechanism
and cost for each new facility. If you have already provided this information in the CIP,
reference the CIP.
 No
Part III–Water, Page 5
31. Collection & Distribution Facilities: Provide collection and distribution facility summary
statistics.
Facility Type
Pump plants
Canals
Tunnels
Conduits/Siphons
Reservoirs
Regional Filtration Plants
Transmission pipelines
Transmission feeders
Dams
Outlet towers
Miles/Number
Capacity
Purpose
32. New Collection & Distribution Facilities: Is your agency planning or in the midst of
constructing additional collection or distribution facilities in excess of $1 million?
 Yes. Provide location, purpose, capacity, construction schedule, financing mechanism
and cost for each new facility. If you have already provided this information in the CIP,
reference the CIP.
 Yes. None of the planned facilities exceed the $1 million threshold.
 No
33. Water Conservation: Indicate whether and how water conservation services are provided.
 Urban Water Conservation (MOU) Signatory.
 Conservation Credits Program fund recipient. Provide annual amount received.
 Other: describe water conservation services.
 None: this agency does not provide water conservation services
34. Imported Water: Indicate how wholesale imported water services are provided.
 Purchase: this agency purchases water from a water wholesaler. Provide contractual
entitlement and amount delivered for most recent three years. If multiple providers, list each
of them. If available in a document already provided, indicate reference and pages.
Provider:
________________________
Entitlement: ________________________ acre/feet
Delivered:
________________________ acre/feet in 2002
Delivered:
________________________ acre/feet in 2001
Delivered:
________________________ acre/feet in 2000
 None: this agency does not rely on imported water.
Part III–Water, Page 6
35. Water Supply: Other than imported water, indicate annual water supply received by source.
2000
2001
2002
Well water (groundwater)
Reclaimed water
Local storage
Appropriative Surface Water
Riparian Surface Water
Pre-1914 Surface Water
Other
36. Water Demand: Describe current water demand and peak demand by zone or sub-area. If
master plan has been provided, you may cite page numbers.
37. Growth Effects: Are land use plans and growth patterns increasing, decreasing, or not affecting
service demand?
 Increasing
 Decreasing
 Not Affecting
 Don’t Know
38. Water Demand Forecast: Describe how your agency forecasts wholesale and retail water
demand for your service area. What is the projected growth in wholesale and retail water service
demand in the next year? Five years? Ten years?
39. Water Rates: Provide or cite location in published documents already provided of a complete
water rate schedule.
40. Rate Increases: Provide a table indicating average rates by customer type over the last 10 years
in nominal dollars (i.e. do not correct for inflation). Explain any rate increases that exceed
average inflation as measured by the Consumer Price Index.
41. Rate Variance: Does your agency charge different water rates to particular customer classes or
retailers within different geographic areas?
 Yes. Provide a map indicating the different rate areas and an explanation as to why rates are
higher or lower in different areas.
 No
Part III–Water, Page 7
42. Current Facility Needs: Does your agency need new facilities or facility upgrades that have
not been planned due to financing, or other constraints?
 Yes. Describe area where new facilities are needed, and explain the constraints that have
prevented your agency from building new facilities.
 No.
43. Infrastructure Needs or Deficiencies: Does your agency have infrastructure needs or
deficiencies that limit your ability to provide service as the population in your service area grows
over the next 10 years?
44. Excess Capacity: Describe any areas with excess capacity. Is excess capacity available to serve
other agency customers and eliminate duplicate infrastructure construction by other agencies?
45. Shared Facilities: Do you currently share facilities with other jurisdictions?
 Yes. Describe shared facilities and arrangements.
 No.
46. Customer Complaints: If a customer is dissatisfied with your service, how would that
customer file a grievance or complaint? Describe number and type of complaints filed within
the most recent calendar or fiscal year. Provide contact information for ombudsman or other
person at your agency responsible for handling complaints.
47. Distinguished Service: Describe any awards, honors or other accomplishments of your agency
within the last five years.
48. Joint/Reciprocal Service: Does your agency participate in reciprocal service agreements?
 Yes. Describe participants and arrangements.
 No. Explain.
49. Regional Collaboration: List service-related joint powers authorities or joint decision-making
efforts in which district participates, and any savings obtained through the partnerships.
Part III–Water, Page 8
50. Evaluation of Management Efficiencies: Describe cooperative arrangements with other
agencies that produce administrative, management and/or operational efficiencies.
51. Opportunities for Improvement: Are there currently untapped opportunities for your
jurisdiction to provide service more efficiently or effectively by collaborating with other service
providers in the areas of maintenance, administration, billing or shared staffing arrangements?
 Yes. Describe current deficiencies or inefficiencies. Explain how collaboration or other
improvements might be warranted.
 No
52. Shared Facility Opportunities: Do you see potential opportunities to share your facilities with
other agencies or to share other agencies’ facilities?
 Yes. Describe shared facility opportunities.
 No.
53. Cost Avoidance Opportunities: Do your agency’s services or facilities overlap or duplicate
those provided by another agency? Could any of your agency’s services be duplicated by
another agency?
54. Financing Constraints and Opportunities: Does your agency face revenue and operating
constraints that affect the level of service and condition of infrastructure of your agency? Does
your agency face financing constraints in meeting future service needs as the population in your
service area grows over the next 10 years?
55. Opportunities for Rate Restructuring: Are there unmet opportunities to reduce service
costs?
56. Government Structure Options: Identify any opportunities to streamline or improve the
provision of service through a reorganization of service providers.
Part III–Water, Page 9