Another Reason an Audit is Desirable

By Don Rae

For several years we have repeatedly called for a complete independent management audit of Three Rivers Levee Authority. We have been rebuffed at every turn.

On August 3 of this year a filing was made in the Colusa Superior Court by a TRLIA contractor, River Partners (see the Territorial Dispatch issue of September 11, Page 9) trying to get out from under a State of California finding that it failed to pay prevailing wages in a contract in Colusa County. As the court documents assert, this is not the first time River Partners has been subject to a review by the Department of Industrial Relations for wage issues.

River Partners (and TRLIA) has been asked to provide information on the contracts it has with TRLIA as it has several, including the Bear River and Feather River Setback Levee projects. TRLIA attorneys have reported back that River Partners does not have to provide information as it is not a public agency.

We believe that such an argument, while arguably legal, is nothing more than another attempt by TRLIA to avoid public scrutiny of its public business.

As of this writing, River Partners attorneys have not responded to a media request regarding the current legal dispute and TRLIA, through its attorney, has managed to avoid answering questions about its own contracts with River Partners.

This behavior is consistent with TRLIA’s avoidance of answering media requests over the years.

We ask the Grand Jury to look into this matter and ask that the Yuba County Board of Supervisors, the Board of Directors of Reclamation District 784, and the public member of the TRLIA board to start being open and transparent in accordance with their oft-repeated vow to do so.