12-081 - Cascade Water Alliance - Joint Municipal Utility Services

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Section 7.4 Water Quality. In addition to agreements under 5.1 of this Agreement, -Cascade shall be responsible for water quality that meets or exceeds all federal or state requirements at the point of delivery from Cascade to the Member, consistent with applicable laws and regulations. Cascade assumes source water quality responsibility and liability with respect to Water Supply Assets under its ownership or control (including water wheeled to a Member through another Member's facilities). Cascade is also responsible for preparing and carrying out water quality activities compatible with the water quality requirements of regional water suppliers integrated with Cascade's system (e.g., 'Tacoma, Everett, and Seattle). Cascade may, in its sole discretion, determine and adjust the appropriate method and level of treatment of water that it supplies, so long as that water meets applicable state and federal requirements. If water that it supplies meets those requirements, Cascade shall not be obligated to adjust the method or level of treatment so that the water can be more readily blended with a Member's Independent Supply or more readily transmitted through a Member's internal system. Each Member shall remain responsible for water quality within its respective distribution system, assuming that adequate water supply quality is provided by Cascade at the point of delivery from Cascade. Each Member shall be responsible for all costs related to making water supplied by Cascade compatible with that Member's internal system, including but not limited to, costs of additional treatment. Section 7.5 Water Supply Rates and Charges. The Board shall set Rates and Charges according to a Rate Calculation Methodology adopted from time to time by the Board. The Rate Calculation Methodology for Members' Supply Commitment shall provide for the definition and calculation of Demand Shares and for a uniform pricing structure with a commodity charge and fixed charges allocated by Demand Share. Cascade may sell water to a Non - Member under terms and conditions established by a 65% Dual Majority Vote of the Board. Revenue received from the sale of water to Non - Members shall be used to offset or reduce Rates and Charges to Members to the extent practicable, except that such revenue need not be treated as reducing or offsetting those amounts that are necessary for the payment of debt service on Bonds and for the provision of reserve and coverage requirements for the Bonds. A Member shall be assigned a Demand Share based on the Board's best estimate of capacity to be used by that Member. The Demand Share shall be established based on an audit of that Member's past three (3) years of water use. After three (3) years as a Member, the baseline demand and capacity obligation for that Member shall be fixed based on actual experience as a Member. A specific Demand Share may be set by the Board to account for circumstances, such as (by way of example and not by limitation) costs of extending the Supply System to a Member, or when Independent Supplies affect regional demand patterns. When water supply from Cascade is wheeled through a Member to another Member, Cascade may presume that the first Member receiving the water is the "User" for calculation of Demand Shares unless the Members concerned instruct Cascade to use a different allocation. Rate credits for Water Supply Asset transfers are not deducted in the calculation of Demand Shares but are applied to reduce what a Member would otherwise pay. Joint Municipal Utility Services Agreement 18 March 28, 2012