Auditor General: Hit by Recession, Arizona’s Water Department 10 Years Behind
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CAP canal just north of Florence town limits on the 79.
A decade after the recession cut its budget and staffing to the bone, the state agency tasked with making sure Arizona has a solid water supply is 10 years behind in key elements of groundwater management, according to a recent report by the state auditor general’s office.
The Arizona Department of Water Resources also failed at times to follow up with well owners and drillers who did not file mandatory reports, or with people who could be pumping groundwater but not reporting it. Meanwhile, its most recent report on municipal water conservation was published in October 2011 — nearly eight years ago — despite a statutory mandate to put out the report every three years, according to the 43-page report published in late January.