SLO County supervisors to decide whether to vote in Paso water basin election

San Luis Obispo County supervisors are expected to decide Tuesday whether they want to cast a ballot in the election to form a management district for the Paso Robles groundwater basin.

The county gets to vote in the small-landowner category of the district formation vote because it owns 29 acres scattered throughout the basin, mostly in the form of vacant lots.

The county is not a registered voter in the basin, so it cannot vote on the parcel tax to fund the basin’s management. Also, the election for the two small-landowner seats on the district’s board is uncontested, so the county will not be able to participate in that election.

The item is on the board’s consent agenda, but Supervisor Frank Mecham said he expects the board to take it off the consent agenda and hold a separate vote because of the controversial nature of the water district formation.

County public works staff is recommending that the county take no formal action on voting “yes” or “no” on the question of the water district. This is because the county opted not to submit a ballot argument in favor of formation of the district, said John Diodati, the county’s Paso Robles basin project manager.

“Staff thinks that for consistency, the board should remain neutral,” he said.

This story was originally published February 22, 2016 at 7:07 PM with the headline "SLO County supervisors to decide whether to vote in Paso water basin election."