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Philadelphia could become 1st major US city with soda tax

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — A California water district penalized by federal regulators this year gave one of its executives a $1.4 million home loan. Records obtained by The Associated Press from Westlands Water District detail the 2007 loan, now at less than 1 percent interest. Westlands gave the loan to new executive Jason Peltier when he left the U.S. Interior Department. Peltier left Westlands last summer. The water district is giving him until 2021 to repay the final $1 million-plus. Westlands and Peltier defend the public agency's loan, saying it was allowed under its rules. Governance experts questioned the loan and whether water officials properly disclosed it to the public. Regulators assessed the water district $125,000 this year for misleading investors regarding what its general manager called "a little Enron accounting."

AP Exclusive: Water giant gave $1.4M loan to official