minutes

Regular Meeting

Governing Board of Sweetwater Authority

September 14, 2005

The Governing Board of Sweetwater Authority held a regular meeting on Wednesday, September 14, 2005, at the Sweetwater Authority Administrative Office, 505 Garrett Avenue, Chula Vista, California. Chair Pocklington called the meeting to order at 6:00 p.m.

ROLL CALL

Directors Present: Alkire, Beauchamp, Doud, Pocklington, and Welsh.

Directors Absent: Morrison and Salas.

Others Present: General Manager Bostad, Operations Manager Rogers, Legal Counsel Cowett, and Board Secretary Farpón. Staff members Hank Gaus, Bill Olson, George Silva, Jim Smyth and Don Thomson.

PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG
Chair Pocklington conducted the pledge of allegiance to the flag.

OPPORTUNITY FOR PUBLIC COMMENT (Government Code Section (54954.3)
There were no members of the public present for comment.

CHAIR ’S PRESENTATION
There was none.

ACTION CALENDAR ITEMS

ITEMS TO BE ADDED, WITHDRAWN, OR REORDERED IN THE AGENDA
There were none.

APPROVAL OF MINUTES

Director Doud made a motion, seconded by Director Alkire, that the Governing Board approve the minutes of August 24, 2005. The motion carried.

APPROVAL OF DEMANDS AND WARRANTS

Director Doud made a motion, seconded by Director Beauchamp, that the Governing Board approve Warrants 101651 through 101950 including all voided checks. The motion carried.

NOTE: Director Morrison entered the meeting at 6:04 p.m.

AD HOC COMMITTEE – PER DIEM POLICY REVIEW (Meeting of September 6, 2005)

Review of Board Policy 510 – Per Diem and Reimbursement: Director Beauchamp reported that the Committee, composed of Director Pocklington, Director Salas, and himself, identified three major points of discussion: 1) attendance at meetings or conferences held long distances away that require costly travel expenses or registration fees; 2) attendance at events, such as the First Friday breakfast, that do not have a water-related program; and 3) frequency of Authority Committee meetings with small agendas that could possibly be combined with the next scheduled meeting. Director Pocklington said this was a good opportunity to take an overall look at the Board’s meeting attendance and see if any adjustments needed to be made. Director Welsh expressed concern that curtailing participation in meetings of larger regional organizations may place the Board out of the loop on state or national issues. She also stated that what originally drove group attendance at the First Friday breakfast was to “show the colors” of Sweetwater Authority in the local community. Director Beauchamp believes that Board members’ attendance at regional meetings of national organizations is undoubtedly beneficial, but the question is whether the entire Board needs to attend certain meetings or if a representative number would suffice. The Board agreed that general attendance by Board members at local community events, such as BonitaFest and the Lemon Festival, is beneficial. General Manager Bostad said that staff is compiling information on the Board’s meeting attendance for the past year to use as a guide in developing a future strategy for attendance at local and long-distance water-related meetings and local community and chamber events. Director Pocklington said that, once the Ad Hoc Committee has reviewed all the information, the Board might have a workshop to finalize its policy. Director Doud requested that the recent amendment to Policy 510 precluding per diem payment for directors attending meetings of other organizations by teleconference be reconsidered. He would like to see per diem payment allowed for teleconferenced meetings rather than expend the cost to travel to a long-distance site. This was an information item and no action was required by the Governing Board.

FINANCE & PERSONNEL COMMITTEE (Meeting of September 8, 2005)

Director Alkire made a motion, seconded by Director Welsh, that the Governing Board approve the membership renewal in the American Water Works Association for Fiscal Year 2005-2006 and the payment of dues in the amount of $4,170. The motion carried.

Director Alkire made a motion, seconded by Director Welsh, that the Governing Board approve the issue of special metal cards to retiring employees and outgoing Board members allowing them free lifetime access to fishing at Sweetwater Authority fishing facilities. The motion carried.

Director Alkire made a motion, seconded by Director Welsh, that the Governing Board approve the proposed changes to the Adjustment to Customer Water Bill Policy as submitted, with a modification to Section F. (Authority) to give the General Manager unlimited authority to approve adjustments on a case-by-case basis. Director Doud voiced reservations about the Committee’s recommendation authorizing the General Manager’s unlimited authority for approval of leak adjustments. Director Alkire responded that the quarterly report on leak adjustments would be the Board’s monitor to review and challenge any high bill adjustments made, if necessary. The Board agreed this item needed further clarification and review by the Finance and Personnel Committee. Director Alkire withdrew his motion. This item will be sent back to the Finance and Personnel Committee for further review.

Consideration of at-will status for Department Heads and Section Heads: Director Welsh voiced her concern regarding the terminology “at will” versus“ for cause” and she stated she would like more clarification on this issue. This was an information item and no action was required by the Governing Board.

OPERATIONS COMMITTEE (Meeting of September 7, 2005)

Director Doud made a motion, seconded by Director Welsh, that the Governing Board reject the sole bid received and direct staff to rebid this project later this year. The motion carried.

Director Doud made a motion, seconded by Director Alkire, that the Governing Board approve the City of Chula Vista’s request to utilize the BelAire and Lynwood Hills tank sites at no cost. The use of the sites, including access, will be consistent with the terms currently being implemented with the cellular phone companies. The motion carried.

Update of Recycled Water Program. This was an information item and no action was required by the Governing Board.

ADOPTION OF RESOLUTION 05-13

Upon a motion by Director Doud, seconded by Director Alkire, the following resolution:

RESOLUTION 05-13

RESOLUTION OF THE GOVERNING BOARD OF SWEETWATER AUTHORITY
CONCURRING IN THE NOMINATION OF EDWARD N. LAYTON TO THE OFFICE OF PRESIDENT OF THE ASSOCIATION OF CALIFORNA WATER AGENCIES JOINT POWERS INSURANCE AUTHORITY (ACWA/JPIA)

was passed and adopted by the following vote to wit:

Ayes: Directors Alkire, Beauchamp, Doud, Morrison, Pocklington, and Welsh
Noes: None
Absent: Director Salas
Abstain: None

NEW BUSINESS

Director Welsh made a motion, seconded by Director Doud, that the Governing Board approve the request from Municipal Water District of Orange County to adopt a resolution concurring in the nomination of Joan Finnegan to the office of Vice President of ACWA/JPIA. The motion carried.

Director Doud made a motion, seconded by Director Alkire, that the Governing Board vote for Saundra Jacobs as Chair, Merle Aleshire as Vice Chair, and Jo MacKenzie, Betty Ferguson and Chuck Muse as Board Representatives at the ACWA Region 10 Election for 2006-2007 Term. The motion carried with Director Pocklington abstaining.

Director Pocklington made a motion, seconded by Director Beauchamp, that the Board Meeting of September 28th be cancelled due to lack of a quorum. The motion carried.

APPROVAL OF DIRECTOR’S ATTENDANCE AT MEETINGS AND FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS.

Council of Water Utilities, San Diego County Meeting at Stoneridge Country Club – Tuesday, September 20, 2005 – 7:15 – 8:45 a.m. All the Directors with the exception of Director Pocklington will attend this pre-approved meeting. No action was required by the Governing Board.

Director Doud made a motion, seconded by Director Welsh, that the Governing Board approve per diem for Directors who wish to attend the American Water Works Association (AWWA) Public Officials Summit, October 8 and 9, 2005, in Denver, Colorado. The motion carried.

WESTCAS’ Fall Conference – John Ascuaga’s Nugget Hotel, Sparks, Nevada – October 19-21, 2005. None of the Directors will attend this pre-approved event. No action was required by the Governing Board.

ACWA 2005 Fall Conference & Exhibition – November 29th – December 2nd, 2005 – Town & Country Resort & Convention Center, San Diego. All Directors present at the meeting today will attend this pre-approved event. No action was required by the Governing Board.

CSDA Staying in Compliance – December 14, 2005 – Sacramento, California. Director Doud will attend this pre-approved event. No action was required by the Governing Board.

REPORT OF VICE TREASURER

General Manager Bostad had nothing to report.

BUDGET REPORT – DIRECTOR OF FINANCE GAUS
Report as of July 31, 2005

Director of Finance Gaus said that, after the first month of the new fiscal year, Water Sales are ahead by $400,000 and Other Income is about $18,000 over budget. Interest Income is over budget by approximately $84,000. Operating Expenses are approximately $154,000 under budget. Collectively, we have about $600,000 over what was budgeted.

MANAGEMENT REPORT

Report of Operations Manager Rogers: Operations Manager Rogers addressed Director Doud’s earlier question regarding a warrant for $50,000 to the City of Chula Vista for utility permits. The invoice for that warrant included 107 permits from January 1 through June 30, 2005, at $300 each, which equals $32,100. Our account only contained $9,000, so we had a deficit of $23,000. This warrant included the $23,000 account deficit as well as $27,000 to be held on account for the balance of the year.

Mr. Rogers also reported that the plant that makes the polymer that we use for coagulation at the Perdue Treatment Plant is located on the Gulf Coast. This plant supplies about 65 percent of the polymer in the United States. The plant was damaged by five feet of water during the hurricane. This ruined its pumps and they will not be able to produce polymer for four months. Staff is in the process of locating and testing substitute polymers. Since we only had a five- or six-day supply of polymer in our stockpile, we had to buy imported raw water. He added that we were not expecting to be paying for water at this time, and it is important to find a substitute polymer and get off the imported raw water.

Report of General Manager Bostad: General Manager Bostad reported that he gave the “No Time to Waste – A Blueprint for California Water” PowerPoint presentation to the National City Council on September 6th, and he thought it was well received. He also mentioned that the ACWA newsletter noted that only 13 agencies out of 400 have passed a resolution supporting the Blueprint. A similar presentation will be scheduled for the City of Chula Vista Council. Mr. Bostad also informed the Board that Director of Engineering Smyth will be involved with the recycled water presentation at the next National City Council meeting. He invited the Board members to attend the Employee Health and Safety Fair. He also reported being involved in the CWA Drought Management Planning. He added that there are very critical issues regarding local resource reliability and guidelines during a drought, which he will be reporting to the Board in the near future.
He also pointed out a booklet titled “To Quench a Thirst” from CWA, which is a good summary of the history of water in San Diego County. The Board will have one available for reference and additional copies can be obtained as needed.

Mr. Bostad reported that interviews would be held for the position of Director of Finance that will be vacated after Mr. Gaus’ retirement.

DIRECTOR’S COMMENTS

Director Doud said that Blanch Rickey, the Manager of the Brooklyn Dodgers, once said, “Luck occurs when opportunity meets preparation.”

Director Pocklington said he made a trip this past week to Chicago to see relatives and attend his 55th high school class reunion. He noted that Northern Illinois is facing a drought right now, which has ruined farm crops. They do not have reservoirs or irrigation systems like we have here, and the drought hits them harder than it does us.

CLOSED SESSION

There was no need for one.

ADJOURNMENT

With no further business before the Board, Chair Pocklington adjourned the meeting at 7:07 p.m., to the hour of 6:00 p.m. on October 12, 2005.