ABSTRACT
My premise is that the local citizen should pay directly
through a fair and equitable user charge to a local or re
gional water utility operation, either public or privately
owned. I base this opinion on my previous experience as a
manager of the water utility at Dallas, Texas, which has been
operated as a "sacred fund" enterprise function of local
government since 1936. The department operated on user charges
prior to 1936; however, diversion of revenues to other city
operations had mired the utility in debt. At that time, a
charter reform, which instituted the city-manager form of
government, assured protected funds to the water department.
