FPUD recognized with four awards

FALLBROOK – The Fallbrook Public Utility District has received four awards: a fiscal management award, another award for engineering and building the Santa Margarita River Conjunctive Use Project, and two budget-management awards.

FPUD was awarded the "District of Distinction – Gold" accreditation from the Special District Leadership Foundation for its exemplary fiscal management policies and practices in district operations.

The award shows a high level of accountability and transparency by the district and its management of ratepayer funds. In addition, FPUD's board of directors and executive staff had to complete educational training in public governance and financial management.

There are more than 1,000 special districts in California. Only six in the state have this level of distinction, and FPUD is one of them.

FPUD also received the 2023 Engineering Excellence Award from the American Council of Engineering Companies for building the Santa Margarita River Conjunctive Use local water project.

The American Council is a highly respected industry leadership organization, representing thousands of companies, engineers, land surveyors and other specialists. It is known as the voice of the engineering industry in Washington DC and nationwide.

The local river project is projected to meet more than half of FPUD's water needs for the next year, due to the recent rains refilling the groundwater basin. This local project was seven decades in the making. Prior to it coming online, virtually all FPUD's water was imported.

FPUD received two budget awards for the current fiscal year.

The "Operating Budget Excellence Award" was given by the California Society of Municipal Finance Officers. The society promotes excellence in government finance, especially focusing on ethical decision-making, transparency and accountability to enhance the public's trust.

The district also received the Government Finance Officers Association's "Distinguished Budget Presentation Award" for meeting the highest principles of governmental budgeting.

In order to receive it, an agency must satisfy nationally recognized guidelines for effective budget presentation. These guidelines assess how well an agency's adopted budget serves as a policy document, a financial plan, a guide for operating, and a communication device for the public and staff.

Submitted by Fallbrook Public Utility District.