STOCKTON, CA, Mar. 25, 2011 -- A federal court has denied the federal government's petition for a rehearing in litigation with California water companies that has been going for nearly 20 years.
Stockton East Water District, Central San Joaquin Water Conservation District, and the California Water Service Company maintained that the federal government breached a contractual agreement, arguing that they received far less water from the New Melones Reservoir than they had been promised.
A lesser court originally found in favor of the federal government, but on appeal, the water districts won out. The federal government, in this latest round, was petitioning for the case to be reheard.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, however, ruled that there was conclusive evidence that "the quantities of water promised were not delivered, and that therefore a breach occurred."
The case is now remanded to the United States Court of Federal Claims, where a determination of monetary damages will be made.
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