An Audit Report on Selected Groundwater Conservation Districts
October 2013
Report Number 14-004
Overall Conclusion
Auditors selected 21 groundwater conservation districts and 2 underground water conservation districts (districts) and audited their (1) achievement of selected groundwater management plan goals and (2) compliance with selected statutory requirements. Results are summarized below.
Districts' Achievement of Groundwater Management Plan Goals
Eight (35 percent) of the 23 districts fully achieved all applicable groundwater management plan goals audited. Texas Water Code, Chapter 36, requires districts to establish groundwater management plans. Those eight districts were:
- Clearwater Underground Water Conservation District.
- Cow Creek Groundwater Conservation District.
- Goliad County Groundwater Conservation District.
- Lone Star Groundwater Conservation District.
- McMullen Groundwater Conservation District.
- Pineywoods Groundwater Conservation District.
- Rolling Plains Groundwater Conservation District.
- Upper Trinity Groundwater Conservation District.
Ten (43 percent) of the 23 districts fully or partially achieved all applicable groundwater management plan goals audited. Those 10 districts were:
- Coastal Plains Groundwater Conservation District.
- Colorado County Groundwater Conservation District.
- Crockett County Groundwater Conservation District.
- Fayette County Groundwater Conservation District.
- Lower Trinity Groundwater Conservation District.
- Menard County Underground Water District.
- Mid-East Texas Groundwater Conservation District.
- Southern Trinity Groundwater Conservation District.
- Texana Groundwater Conservation District.
- Wes-Tex Groundwater Conservation District.
Five (22 percent) of the 23 districts did not achieve 1 or more of the applicable groundwater management plan goals audited. Those five districts were:
- Clear Fork Groundwater Conservation District.
- Hays Trinity Groundwater Conservation District.
- Kimble County Groundwater Conservation District.
- Northern Trinity Groundwater Conservation District.
- Trinity Glen Rose Groundwater Conservation District.
Auditors reviewed activities that the districts performed to achieve selected management plan goals. Examples of those goals were providing for the most efficient use of groundwater, controlling and preventing waste, addressing drought conditions, and addressing conservation. A list of the eight statutorily required groundwater management plan goals is presented in Appendix 4.
Districts' Compliance with Statutory Requirements
Fourteen (61 percent) of the 23 districts audited fully complied with 8 or more of the 10 Texas Water Code statutory requirements audited. Seven of those districts fully complied with all applicable Texas Water Code requirements audited. Those seven districts were:
- Clearwater Underground Water Conservation District.
- Colorado County Groundwater Conservation District.
- Fayette County Groundwater Conservation District.
- Lone Star Groundwater Conservation District.
- Mid-East Texas Groundwater Conservation District.
- Pineywoods Groundwater Conservation District.
- Upper Trinity Groundwater Conservation District.
Examples of the Texas Water Code requirements audited included requirements for the districts to obtain surety bonds for employees and members of their boards of directors, obtain an annual financial audit, adopt annual budgets, hold quarterly board meetings, and adopt policies and rules. In some instances, certain statutory requirements did not apply to a district. See Table 25 in Chapter 2 for detailed results.