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Commissioners decline to accept regional water‑supply report, ask for concrete plan
Summary
After public concern about aquifer protection and financing, the board declined to fully accept the Withlacoochee Regional Water Supply Authority report and discussed sending it back for a concrete multi‑decade plan and financing strategy.
The Citrus County Board of County Commissioners declined to accept the latest report from the Withlacoochee Regional Water Supply Authority and signaled it wants a clearer, financed plan for the county’s long‑term drinking water supply.
"What are we gonna do about the aquifer? What are we gonna do for our drinking water? What's the plan looking forward?" Commissioner Jeff Kennard asked during the July meeting, pressing the authority's seven‑year update for specific projects and funding sources. Kennard and several members of the public said the report reads too much like history and not enough like a forward plan with budgets and timelines.
Public commenters said the version presented in the packet — published in 2024 and received now — lacks urgency. One resident called the document "a history book" and urged the board to ask the authority to revise the report with updated data and clear next steps. Staff and commissioners discussed whether to acknowledge receipt now or return the report with a request for a definitive financing and implementation schedule.
No formal policy was adopted at the meeting. Commissioners discussed options including sending the report back to the authority for revision, adding the issue to a future county agenda for further direction, and pursuing conversations with state agencies and regional partners about reclaiming or securing water supply assets. The board urged staff to bring back a path forward and to consider legislative or administrative options if regional partners will not commit to concrete financing.
