CONTRA COSTA WATER
DISTRICT
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
REGULAR MEETING
April 16,
2008
MINUTES
CALL TO ORDER
President
Campbell called to order a regular meeting of the Board of Directors of the
Contra Costa Water District at 6:30 p.m., at 1331 Concord Avenue, Concord,
the regular meeting place of the Board.
ROLL
CALL
Directors Present: Joseph
L. Campbell, President
Elizabeth
R. Anello, Vice President
John
A. Burgh
Karl L. Wandry
Directors Absent: Bette
Boatmun
General Manager: Walter
J. Bishop
Legal
Counsel: Robert
B. Maddow
District
Secretary: Sharon
L. Burris
President
Campbell noted that Director Boatmun was absent and had previously notified the
Board.
PLEDGE
OF ALLEGIANCE
Director of Public Affairs Patty Friesen led the Pledge of Allegiance.
ADOPTION OF AGENDA
Mr. Bishop
advised that Agenda Item No 7 – Authorize a conditional non-standard service
agreement with KATCAR Properties, LLC, for Lot 7 on Meritage Lane in Walnut Creek in compliance with the Code of
Regulations would be removed from the agenda at the request of the
applicant.
Responding to
a question from Director Wandry asking if the item would be continued, Mr.
Bishop replied that there was no definite date at this time.
CLOSED SESSION
1. Conference
with Legal Counsel – Existing Litigation as allowed under Government Code
54956.9(a): – Fitzpatrick vs. Contra Costa Water District.
At 6:32 p.m.,
President Campbell announced that the Board would move into closed
session. There was one item before the
Board concerning litigation, which did not require the announcement of
additional attendees.
RECONVENE FROM CLOSED SESSION
2. Report
on closed session.
At 6:38 p.m., President Campbell
reconvened the meeting and announced that the Board did not take any action on
the matter before it.
PUBLIC COMMENTS
President
Campbell asked if there were any public comments. There were no public comments.
CONSENT CALENDAR
3. Approve the minutes of the March 19,
2008.
4. Approve the warrant register dated April
17, 2008.
5. Authorize execution of an agreement for
temporary transfer of water in 2008 and 2009 to San Luis & Delta Mendota
Water Authority.
6. Authorize the transfer of $122,000 from
the FY08 Human Resources and Risk Division’s Insurance Premium Budget, and an
additional $128,000 from the General Manager’s FY08 Operating Contingency Fund
to the Human Resources and Risk Division’s FY08 General Liability Budget for
settlement of a third-party liability claim.
MOTION: Wandry/Anello to
approve the consent calendar. The motion
carried by a unanimous voice vote.
ACTION
7. Authorize
a conditional non-standard service agreement with KATCAR Properties, LLC, for
Lot 7 on Meritage Lane in Walnut Creek in compliance with the Code of
Regulations.
8. Nomination
of Special District Representative to Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCO)
Election on April 21, 2008
a. Appoint the Contra Costa Water
District-designated representative to vote for Contra Costa Special District
Association’s Representative
to the Local Agency Formation Commission;
b. Determine
whether the District’s
representative will vote for the candidate of their choice; or
c. If the Board chooses to direct its
representative, designate which candidate will receive the vote.
Mr.
Bishop reported that the Board had historically appointed the Board-designated
representative to Contra Costa Special Districts Association (CCSDA) Director
Boatmun to cast the vote for the Special Districts’ representative to LAFCO. The LAFCO election would be held in
conjunction with the CCSDA meeting on April 21, and Director Boatmun would be
unable to attend. The Board had traditionally given the
representative the authority
to vote his/her conscience. He noted
that David Piepho, Town of Discovery Bay, and George Schmidt, West County
Wastewater District were the two candidates.
President
Campbell noted that he had never cast the vote in the LAFCO election and volunteered
to be the Board’s
representative to attend the meeting and cast the vote.
MOTION: Wandry/Burgh to appoint President
Campbell as the designated representative to vote for Contra Costa Special
District Association’s
Representative to the Local Agency Formation Commission. The motion carried by a unanimous voice
vote.
President
Campbell asked if the Board would like him to vote his conscience or if the
Board preferred to designate the candidate.
He indicated that his preference would be to vote his conscience and in
the best interest of the District.
There
was a motion by Director Burgh and a second by Vice President Anello to allow
President Campbell to exercise his judgment and vote his conscience.
Director
Wandry opined that there would be a potential conflict of interest electing David
Piepho as the Special District representative to LAFCO considering that his
wife served on the Board of Supervisors.
Discussion took place on candidates being considered for the seat. President Campbell advised that only one of
the candidates had submitted a statement of qualifications at the present
time.
MOTION: Burgh/Anello to allow President Campbell to
exercise his judgment and vote his conscience.
The motion carried by the following vote: Ayes:
Anello, Burgh, Campbell; Noes:
Wandry.
9. Legislative
Affairs Report – April 2008
Review
update on legislative issues and adopt District positions for the
following: State Legislation AB 2504
(DeSaulnier) – Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta:
Tourism and Marketing Plan – Support; SB 27 (Simitian) – Sacramento-San Joaquin
River Delta Drinking Water – Change from Support to Oppose; SB 1334 (Calderon)
– Pipes and Fittings – Oppose; and SB 1395 (Corbett) – Lead Plumbing:
Monitoring and Compliance Testing – Support.
Mr. Bishop indicated that Ms.
Friesen would be providing a legislative update.
Ms. Friesen reported
on the following legislation:
AB 2153 (Krekorian) – California Water Efficiency & Security
Act of 2008 – Ms.
Friesen advised that language was recently developed to amend the California
Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). The amendment
would require new residential and commercial construction projects that are subject
to CEQA to first implement all feasible and cost-effective water efficiency
measures. Any increase in water
consumption would need to be fully mitigated through water efficiency measures. She reported that impacts to the District
were uncertain at the present time. She advised that a full analysis of the bill would
be presented during the next Legislative report.
AB 2504 (DeSaulnier) – Delta: Tourism and Marketing
Plan – Ms. Friesen reported that this bill would require the Delta Protection
Commission to develop and adopt a tourism and marketing plan for the Delta. The plan would promote agriculture,
recreation, educational outreach, economic development and cultural and
historical activities. It would also
promote an identity for the Delta and address public lack of awareness as a
critical economic and water supply asset.
She noted that an additional benefit for the District was educational
outreach and focus on cultural and historical activities, which would support
the Los Vaqueros Interpretive
Center. The recommended District position for the bill
was Support.
Responding to a question from Director Wandry
concerning a cost associated with the bill, Ms. Friesen replied that there was
no cost associated with it at the present time.
SB 27 (Simitian) – Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta Drinking Water – Ms. Friesen
reported that the District had taken a support position on SB 27 last
year. At that time, the bill addressed
the Immediate Action Plan. The bill had
been amended to authorize a $4 billion bond to build a peripheral canal. The bill also would establish the Delta Water
and Land Use Authority, which would consist of political appointees, with no
expertise in water and no Delta representative.
The bill also authorized a permanent fee of $50 per acre foot of water
transmitted through the facility, or otherwise pumped from the Delta. It would also allow the Authority to impose
$5 per acre feet on a water agency diverting water upstream of the Delta. The recommended position for the bill was a change from Support to Oppose.
SB 1334 (Calderon) – Pipes and Fittings – Ms. Friesen reported that the California Public Health Department
(PHD) currently retained the responsibility to protect public health from
excessive levels of lead in drinking water.
This bill would amend it so that PHD would no longer ensure compliance. It would allow a private sector laboratory to
approve compliance of plumbing fixtures.
Existing litigation allowed the plumbing industry to make the transition
to the new standard within a three-year period.
This bill would reverse the phasing out use of lead through an attempt
to bypass the regulatory checks and balances that protect public health. An Oppose position was recommended for this bill.
SB 1395 (Corbett) – Lead Plumbing: Monitoring and
Compliance Testing – This bill would establish a regulatory monitoring and
compliance program for safer lead standards for faucets. It includes random testing of faucets for
lead, providing consumers with
confidence that faucets purchased for home use are not a source of lead. Attempts to close any loopholes and would
give faucet manufacturers the opportunity to demonstrate compliance with the
new lead standard. The legislation is being
sponsored by East Bay Municipal Utility District to reduce exposure to lead
from drinking water. The recommended
position for this bill was Support.
President Campbell
asked if there were any questions for the presenter. There were none.
MOTION:
Wandry/Burgh to adopt District positions for the following: State Legislation AB 2504 (DeSaulnier) –
Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta: Tourism
and Marketing Plan – Support; SB 27 (Simitian) – Sacramento-San Joaquin
River Delta Drinking Water – Change from Support to Oppose; SB 1334 (Calderon) –
Pipes and Fittings – Oppose; and SB 1395 (Corbett) – Lead Plumbing:
Monitoring and Compliance Testing – Support. The motion carried by a unanimous voice vote.
REPORTS FOR DISCUSSION
10. Schedule Future Meeting Dates and Times
Mr.
Bishop announced that there was Board concurrence to hold the next Board Study
Session on June 12.
REPORTS
11. General
Manager
Mr. Bishop reported that the Board Study Session
Facilitator Lee Shuff would be contacting staff for recommendations about
placing items on the agenda for the study session. Mr. Shuff would make Boardmembers aware of
staff’s proposed items and a second would be needed to place an item on the
agenda. He also reported that he would
be out of town April 17-20. Assistant
General Manager of Planning/Operations and Maintenance Jerry Brown would be
Acting General Manager during that time.
12. Legal
Counsel
Mr. Maddow briefly reported on a decision concerning a
biological opinion issued earlier in the day by Federal Judge Oliver Wanger. The decision concerned two species of salmon
and one species of steelhead.
13. Board Members
Director
Wandry did not have a report.
Director
Burgh commended his colleagues for conducting District business with dignity
and decorum.
Vice
President Anello reported that she would be attending the Contra Costa Special
Districts Association meeting on April 21, in Pleasant Hill.
President
Campbell referenced a meeting he attended with other community members and
Governor Schwarzenegger on March 19.
During the meeting he had the opportunity to briefly discuss the
District’s Rate Stabilization Fund with the Governor. He advised that he had received a letter from
the Governor thanking him for attending the meeting and also referenced their
conversation concerning the fund.
Referencing
Director Wandry’s comment concerning the potential conflict of interest with
the Board of Supervisors and the special district representative to LAFCO, President
Campbell requested an opinion from Mr. Maddow on the matter.
CLOSED SESSION
14. Conference
with Legal Counsel – Anticipated Litigation under Government Code 54956.9(b) –
one case.
15. Conference with Labor
Negotiator as allowed under Government Code 54957.6; Agency Negotiator: Board President; Employee: General Manager
At 7:03 p.m., President Campbell announced
that the Board would move into closed session. There were
two matters before the Board. The first
matter concerned litigation and did not require the announcement of additional
attendees. The second matter concerned
labor negotiations and the additional attendees would be Assistant General
Manager of Administration Kurt Ladensack, Human Resources and Risk Manager Elia
Bamberger, and Joe Wiley of Wiley, Price and Radulovich.
RECONVENE FROM CLOSED SESSION
16. Report
on closed session.
At 7:55 p.m.,
President Campbell reconvened the meeting and announced that the Board did not
take any action on the matters before it.
ADJOURNMENT
At 7:56 p.m.,
President Campbell adjourned the meeting in remembrance, honor, and respect of former
District employee Dan Danner who recently passed away. The meeting was adjourned to an adjourned
regular meeting of the Board of Directors scheduled for April 30, 2008,
commencing at 6:30 p.m.
Joseph
L. Campbell, President
ATTEST:
Sharon L. Burris
District Secretary
