Annual report pursuant to Section 13 and 15(d)

Accounting Policies, by Policy (Policies)

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Accounting Policies, by Policy (Policies)
12 Months Ended
Aug. 31, 2012
Use of Estimates, Policy [Policy Text Block]
Use of Estimates

The preparation of financial statements in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“GAAP”) requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting period. Actual results could differ from those estimates.
Cash and Cash Equivalents, Policy [Policy Text Block]
Cash and Cash Equivalents

Cash and cash equivalents include all highly liquid debt instruments with original maturities of three months or less. The Company’s cash equivalents are comprised entirely of money market funds maintained at a high quality financial institution in an account which as of August 31, 2012, did not exceed federally insured limits.  At various times during the year ended August 31, 2012, the Company’s main operating account exceeded federally insured limits.
Fair Value of Financial Instruments, Policy [Policy Text Block]
Financial Instruments – Concentration of Credit Risk and Fair Value

Financial instruments that potentially subject the Company to concentrations of credit risk consist primarily of cash equivalents and marketable securities. The Company places its cash equivalents and investments with high quality financial institutions. At various times throughout the year ended August 31, 2012, cash deposits have exceeded federally insured limits. The Company invests its idle cash primarily in certificates of deposit, money market instruments, commercial paper obligations, corporate bonds and US government treasury obligations. To date, the Company has not experienced significant losses on any of these investments.

The following methods and assumptions were used to estimate the fair value of each class of financial instruments for which it is practicable to estimate that value.

Current Assets and Liabilities

The amounts reported on the balance sheets for cash and cash equivalents, trade receivables and trade payables approximate their fair values because of the relatively short maturity of these instruments.

The amount reported on the balance sheets for marketable securities represents the fair value of the underlying instruments as reported by the financial institutions where the funds are held as of August 31, 2012 and 2011.  The Company has recorded net unrealized losses on its marketable securities of $1,100 and $2,900 at August 31, 2012 and August 31, 2011, respectively.  The Company did not realize any gains or losses on its marketable securities during each of the three years ended August 31, 2012, 2011 and 2010.

Notes Receivable and Construction Proceeds Receivable

The amounts reported on the balance sheet for the Company’s notes receivable and construction proceeds receivable approximate their fair values as they bear interest at rates which are comparable to current market rates.

Long-term Financial Liabilities

The Comprehensive Amendment Agreement No. 1 the “CAA” is comprised of a recorded balance and an off-balance sheet or “contingent” obligation associated with the Company’s acquisition of its “Rangeview Water Supply” (defined in Note 4 below).  The amount payable is a fixed amount but is repayable only upon the sale of “Export Water” (defined in Note 4 below).  Because of the uncertainty of the sale of Export Water, the Company has determined that the contingent portion of the CAA does not have a determinable fair value.  The CAA is described further in Note 5 – Participating Interests in Export Water.

The recorded balance of the “Tap Participation Fee” liability (as described below) is its estimated fair value determined by projecting new home development in the Company’s targeted service area over an estimated development period.
Notes Payables and Related Party Accounts Receivable [Policy Text Block]
Notes Payables and Related Party Accounts Receivable

In conjunction with HP A&M defaulting on certain promissory notes, the Company has the right to collect from HP A&M any amounts the Company spends to cure the defaulted notes.  Accordingly the Company has recorded the entire amount of the HP A&M notes as a receivable from HP A&M.  The total receivable from HP A&M is $9.6 million with $4.6 million as current and $5.0 million as long term.  The short term portion of the receivable represents the amount of the defaulted promissory notes payable by HP A&M which were purchased by the Company which the Company will pursue remedies under the Asset Purchase Agreement (the "Arkansas River Agreement" described in more detail in Note 4) over the next 12 months.

Subsequent to fiscal 2012, the Company began acquiring the defaulted and non-defaulted promissory notes that are payable by HP A&M.   The majority of the notes issued by the Company have a five-year term, bear interest at an annual rate of five percent (5%) and require semi-annual payments with a straight-line amortization schedule.
Inventory, Cash Flow Policy [Policy Text Block]
Cash Flows

The Company did not pay any interest or income taxes during the fiscal years ended August 31, 2012, 2011 and 2010, respectively.
Marketable Securities, Policy [Policy Text Block]
Marketable Securities

At August 31, 2012, the Company’s marketable securities are comprised entirely of certificates of deposit maintained at various financial institutions, each of which have invested balances below federally insured limits and pay interest at stated rates through maturity.  The certificates mature at various dates through May 2013; however, these securities represent temporary investments and it is management’s intent to hold these securities available for current operations and not hold them until maturity, therefore they are classified as available-for-sale securities and are recorded at fair value.  The Company has no investments in equity instruments.

The Company’s marketable securities are recorded as available-for-sale and therefore any unrecognized changes in the fair value of these marketable securities is included as a component of accumulated comprehensive income (loss).
Receivables, Policy [Policy Text Block]
Accounts Receivable

The Company records accounts receivable net of allowances for uncollectible accounts.  The Company recorded $20,400 and $0 as of August 31, 2012 and 2011 respectively for allowances for uncollectible accounts. The allowance for uncollectible accounts was determined based on specific review of all past due accounts.  The August 31, 2012 allowance for uncollectible accounts is entirely due to the assumed farm accounts receivable (see Note 7) from HP A&M.
Impairment or Disposal of Long-Lived Assets, Policy [Policy Text Block]
Long-Lived Assets

The Company reviews its long-lived assets for impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount of an asset may not be recoverable.  Recoverability of assets to be held and used is measured by a comparison of the carrying amount of an asset to future undiscounted net cash flows expected to be generated by the eventual use of the asset. If such assets are considered to be impaired, the impairment to be recognized is measured by the amount by which the carrying amount of the assets exceeds the fair value of the assets. Assets to be disposed of are reported at the lower of the carrying amount or fair value less costs to sell. Based on the Company’s procedures the Company believes there are impairments to its “Paradise Water Supply” asset (defined in Note 4 below) and land and water rights held for sale related to the Arkansas River Assets.  There was no impairment in the carrying amounts of the remaining long-lived assets at August 31, 2012 and 2011.  See further discussion in Note 4 below under sections “Paradise Water Supply” and “Arkansas River Assets”.
Depreciation, Depletion, and Amortization [Policy Text Block]
Capitalized Costs of Water and Wastewater Systems and Depreciation and Depletion Charges

Costs to construct water and wastewater systems that meet the Company’s capitalization criteria are capitalized as incurred, including interest, and depreciated on a straight-line basis over their estimated useful lives of up to thirty years.  The Company capitalizes design and construction costs related to construction activities and it capitalizes certain legal, engineering and permitting costs relating to the adjudication and improvement of its water assets.

The Company depletes its water assets that are being utilized on the basis of units produced (i.e. thousands of gallons sold) divided by the total volume of water adjudicated in the water decrees.
Interest Expense, Policy [Policy Text Block]
Tap Participation Fee Liability and Imputed Interest Expense

The Tap Participation Fee liability, as described in Note 7 – Long Term Debt and Operating Lease, represents the discounted fair value of the amounts the Company estimates it will pay HP A&M pursuant to the asset purchase agreement (the “Arkansas River Agreement”) described in more detail in Note 4.  The Company imputes interest expense on the unpaid Tap Participation Fee using the effective interest method over the estimated development period utilized in the valuation of the liability. The Company imputed interest of $3.5 million, $3.8 million and $3.6 million during the years ended August 31, 2012, 2011 and 2010, respectively.

The Tap Participation Fee is due and payable once the Company has sold a water tap and received the consideration due for such water tap. The Company did not sell any water taps during the years ended August 31, 2012, 2011 or 2010.  As of August 31, 2012, 19,427 water taps remain subject to the Tap Participation Fee.
Revenue Recognition, Policy [Policy Text Block]
Revenue Recognition

The Company generates revenues mainly from (i) one time water and wastewater tap fees, (ii) construction fees,  and (iii) monthly wholesale water usage fees and wastewater service fees.  Because these items are separately delivered, the Company accounts for each of the items separately, as described below.

Tap and Construction Fees

Tap fees, also called system development fees, are received in advance, are non-refundable and are typically used to fund construction of certain facilities and defray the acquisition costs of obtaining water rights.

Construction fees are fees used by the Company to construct assets that are typically required to be constructed by developers or home builders.

Proceeds from tap fees and construction fees are deferred upon receipt and recognized in income either upon completion of construction of infrastructure or ratably over time, depending on whether the Company owns the infrastructure constructed with the proceeds or a customer owns the infrastructure constructed with the proceeds.

Tap and construction fees derived from agreements in which the Company will not own the assets constructed with the fees are recognized as revenue using the percentage-of-completion method.  Costs of construction of the assets when the Company will not own the assets are recorded as construction costs.

Tap and construction fees derived from agreements for which the Company will own the infrastructure are recognized as revenues ratably over the estimated accounting service life of the facilities constructed, starting at completion of construction, which could be in excess of thirty years.  Costs of construction of the assets when the Company will own the assets are capitalized and depreciated over their estimated economic lives.

In August 2005, the Company entered into the Water Service Agreement (the “County Agreement”) with Arapahoe County (the “County”) to provide water service to the County’s fairgrounds (the “Fairgrounds”).  Pursuant to the County Agreement, the Company sold the County 38.5 water taps for consideration of $567,490.  In July 2006, upon completion of the construction of the “Wholesale Facilities” (which were paid for with the water tap fee proceeds), the Company began ratably recognizing $428,000 of water tap fees into income.  The $428,000 is the net of the water tap fees received by the Company of $567,490, decreased by (i) royalties to the Colorado State Board of Land Commissioners (the “Land Board” which owns the “Lowry Range”) of $34,522; and (ii) 65% of the total payments made to external CAA holders or $104,136.  In each of the three fiscal years ended August 31, 2012, 2011 and 2010, the Company recognized $14,300 of tap fee revenue.  At August 31, 2012, $341,900 of these tap fees are still deferred.

The Company recognized $41,500 of “Special Facilities” funding as revenue in each of the three fiscal years ended August 31, 2012 and 2011 respectively. These construction revenues also relate to the County Agreement entered into in August 2005.

As of August 31, 2012, the Company has deferred recognition of $1.3 million of tap and construction fee revenue from the County, which will be recognized as revenue ratably through 2036.

In addition to the tap fee revenues and the construction revenues, the Company also records interest income from the County using the effective interest method.  Pursuant to the County Agreement, the County is making payments to the Company totaling $82,200 per year for the construction of the Special Facilities at the Fairgrounds.  These payments will continue through 2015 and include interest at 6% per annum.  The Company recognized $19,200, $22,900 and $26,300 of interest income from the County during the fiscal years ended August 31, 2012, 2011 and 2010, respectively.

In August 2012, the Company entered into an agreement with Front Range Pipeline which grants Front Range Pipeline easement rights for a period of three years to construct a pipeline for total consideration of $28,700.  As of August 31, 2012, the Company had $28,500 in deferred revenue from Front Range Pipeline.

Monthly Wholesale Usage and Service Fees

Monthly wholesale water usage charges are assessed to the Company’s customers based on actual metered usage each month plus a base monthly service fee assessed per single family equivalent (“SFE”) unit served.  One SFE is a customer, whether residential, commercial or industrial, that imparts a demand on the Company’s water or wastewater systems similar to the demand of a family of four persons living in a single family house on a standard sized lot.  One SFE is assumed to have a water demand of approximately 0.4 acre feet per year and to contribute wastewater flows of approximately 300 gallons per day.  Water usage pricing uses a tiered pricing structure.  The Company recognizes wholesale water usage revenues upon delivering water to its customers or its governmental customers’ end-use customers, as applicable.  The water revenues recognized by the Company are shown net of royalties to the Land Board and, when applicable, amounts retained by the Rangeview Metropolitan District (the “District”).

The Company recognizes wastewater processing revenues monthly based on usage. The monthly wastewater service fees are shown net of amounts retained by the District.

Amounts recognized for water and wastewater services during the fiscal years ended August 31, 2012, 2011 and 2010, are presented in the statements of operations.

Costs of delivering water and providing wastewater service to customers are recognized as incurred.

The Company delivered 34.2 million, 34.5 million and 33.1 million gallons of water to customers during the fiscal years ended August 31, 2012, 2011 and 2010, respectively.
Revenue Recognition, Services, Royalty Fees [Policy Text Block]
Royalty and other obligations

Revenues from the sale of Export Water are shown net of royalties payable to the Land Board. Revenues from the sale of water on the “Lowry Range” are shown net of the royalties to the Land Board and the amounts retained by the District.  See further description of the “Lowry Range” in Note 4 – Water Assets under section “Rangeview Water Supply and Water System”.
Oil and Gas Properties Policy [Policy Text Block]
Oil and Gas Lease Payments

As further described in Note 4 below, on March 10, 2011, the Company entered into a Paid-Up Oil and Gas Lease (the “O&G Lease”) and a Surface Use and Damage Agreement (the “Surface Use Agreement”) with Anadarko E&P Company, L.P. (“Anadarko”) a wholly owned subsidiary of Anadarko Petroleum Company.  Pursuant to the O&G Lease on March 10, 2011, the Company received an up-front payment of $1,243,400 from Anadarko for the purpose of exploring for, developing, producing and marketing oil and gas on approximately 634 acres of mineral estate owned by the Company at its Sky Ranch property.  The Company began recognizing the up-front payment from Anadarko as income on a straight-line basis over three years (the initial term of the O&G Lease) on March 10, 2011.  During the years ended August 31, 2012 and 2011, the Company recognized $423,000 and $199,000 respectively, of income related to the up-front payments received pursuant to the O&G Lease.

As of August 31, 2012, the Company has deferred recognition of $639,000 of income related to the O&G Lease, which will be recognized into income ratably through February 2014.
Share-based Compensation, Option and Incentive Plans Policy [Policy Text Block]
Share-based Compensation

The Company maintains a stock option plan for the benefit of its employees and directors.  The Company records share-based compensation costs which are measured at the grant date based on the fair value of the award and are recognized as expense over the applicable vesting period of the stock award using the straight-line method.  The Company has adopted the alternative transition method for calculating the tax effects of share-based compensation which allows for a simplified method of calculating the tax effects of employee share-based compensation.  Because the Company has a full valuation allowance on its deferred tax assets, the granting and exercise of stock options during the fiscal years ended August 31, 2012 and 2011 had no impact on the income tax provisions.

The Company recognized $54,600, $94,600 and $87,600 of share-based compensation expenses during the fiscal years ended August 31, 2012, 2011 and 2010, respectively.
Income Tax, Policy [Policy Text Block]
Income Taxes

The Company uses a “more-likely-than-not” threshold for the recognition and de-recognition of tax positions, including any potential interest and penalties relating to tax positions taken by the Company.  The Company does not have any significant unrecognized tax benefits as of August 31, 2012.

The Company files income tax returns with the Internal Revenue Service and the State of Colorado. The tax years that remain subject to examination are fiscal 2009 through fiscal 2011. The Company does not believe there will be any material changes in its unrecognized tax positions over the next twelve months.

The Company’s policy is to recognize interest and penalties accrued on any unrecognized tax benefits as a component of income tax expense.  At August 31, 2012, the Company did not have any accrued interest or penalties associated with any unrecognized tax benefits, nor was any interest expense recognized during the fiscal years ended August 31, 2012, 2011 or 2010.
Earnings Per Share, Policy [Policy Text Block]
Loss per Common Share

Loss per common share is computed by dividing net loss by the weighted average number of shares outstanding during each period. Common stock options and warrants aggregating 215,100, 280,100 and 262,600 common share equivalents as of August 31, 2012, 2011 and 2010, respectively, have been excluded from the calculation of loss per common share as their effect is anti-dilutive.
New Accounting Pronouncements, Policy [Policy Text Block]
Recently Issued Accounting Pronouncements

The Company continually assesses any new accounting pronouncements to determine their applicability.  Where it is determined that a new accounting pronouncement affects the Company’s financial reporting, the Company undertakes a study to determine the consequence of the change to its financial statements and assures that there are proper controls in place to ascertain that the Company’s financials properly reflect the change.  A variety of proposed or otherwise potential accounting standards are currently under study by standard-setting organizations and various regulatory agencies. Because of the tentative and preliminary nature of these proposed standards, the Company has not determined whether implementation of such proposed standards would be material to the Company’s financial statements.  New pronouncements assessed by the Company recently are discussed below:

In June 2011, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) issued Accounting Standards Update (“ASU”) No. 2011-05, Comprehensive Income (Topic 220) – Presentation of Comprehensive Income (“ASU 2011-05”).  ASU 2011-05 requires entities to present net income and other comprehensive income in either a single continuous statement or in two separate, but consecutive, statements of net income and other comprehensive income. ASU 2011-05 is effective for fiscal years and interim periods beginning after December 15, 2011 (September 1, 2012 for the Company).  The Company does not expect the adoption of ASU 2011-04 to have a material impact on its results of operations, financial condition, or cash flows.