LOS ANGELES, CA--(Marketwired - Dec 11, 2013) - Members of the Association of California Water Agencies (ACWA) on Dec. 4 elected John Coleman, a longtime director of East Bay Municipal Utility District, to a two-year term as president of the statewide association.

Kathleen J. Tiegs, a member of the Cucamonga Valley Water District Board of Directors, was elected vice president. The two will take office in January.

The election took place at ACWA's 2013 Fall Conference & Exhibition, which ran from Dec. 3-6 in Los Angeles.

"The direction our state takes on water policy in the next two years will have a profound impact on the next generation of Californians and beyond," Coleman said. "The issues challenging us are great: securing a dependable water supply, restoring the Bay-Delta, protecting watersheds, managing groundwater and others. But the opportunities are equally great as innovation continues leading us towards improvements in water quality, water recycling and energy management."

Coleman has served as vice president of the association since January 2012. He has been a member of the East Bay MUD board since 1990 and served as president from 1996 to 2000. He is a past president of the board of the California Association of Sanitation Agencies and currently chairs the Upper Mokelumne River Watershed Authority and the Freeport Regional Water Authority. He was appointed chair of ACWA's Federal Affairs Committee in December 2009.

Tiegs has served on the Cucamonga Valley Water District Board of Directors since 2005. She is a member of ACWA's Region 9 Board of Directors and serves on the board of the ACWA / Joint Powers Insurance Authority. She is actively involved in special district advocacy and serves on the Board of Directors for the California Special Districts Association as well as the local chapter of the Association of San Bernardino County Special Districts, where she serves as president.

ACWA is a statewide association of public agencies whose 440 members are responsible for about 90% of the water delivered in California. For more information, visit www.acwa.com.