TIFTON — The disagreement between the City of Tifton and Tift County about the water system has gone to court.

According to documents filed in the Tift County Superior Court by the City of Tifton, the city is seeking a declaratory judgement regarding the interlocal agreement that the city and county entered into in August 2005.

A declaratory judgement is a ruling which determines the rights of parties without awarding damages or ordering anything to be done.

On March 6, 2017 the city sent a letter to the county notifying them that the city decided to terminate the interlocal agreement.

The letter, which was included in the court filing, said that the city decided to terminate the agreement after a water rate study that looked at water rate equalization between city and county residents called into question the need for the agreement to continue.

The county responded to this notice in a letter dated March 16, 2018.

The letter states that the intent of the interlocal agreement was that both the city and county would be joint owners of the water system and says that the city’s “unilateral attempt to withdraw from our jointly owned utility is inconsistent with our written agreement and with the interests of all our utility customers. The effort to terminate the contract is invalid and as such, the contract is still in effect.”

Filing documents state that the city “contends that it has the right to terminate the agreement” and that it “intends to continue to operate the water system as a city utility without interruption.”

The city is asking a judge to terminate the agreement and tell both parties what the rights are of both the city and county.

The Tifton Gazette reached out to city attorney Rob Wilmot and county attorney Tony Rowell for comment.

Wilmot did not immediately respond to a request for comment and Rowell said that he was not in a position to comment until he had a chance to look through the papers and formulate a response.

Follow Eve Copeland on Twitter @EveCopelandTTG.