Self-Policing Water Board Directors? Are you kidding?

A recent blog post by the Surf City Voice showcases a proposal from Municipal Water District of OC  (MWDOC) Board member Brett Barbre to self-police directors and employees of the agency as a means of preventing (or limiting legal exposure?) another Foley folly.

Barbre's may be good, to keep everyone on the straight and narrow, but not likely to protect ratepayers from corrupt public employees and elected leaders.

Barbre’s proposal would have the MWDOC (Municipal Water District of Orange County) board certify that to the best of its knowledge no conflicts of interest exist for its elected directors or for representatives that it appoints to the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California (MWD). The certification would also apply to all MWDOC employees who are required to report under state disclosure regulations.

Self-policing does not work, especially when it comes to political corruption or legal ignorance.

The best way ratepayers can protect themselves is to get involved and become watchdogs over their local government. 

Stay tuned for more on MWD...

Fullerton Water System Study Session - MARK YOUR CALENDAR!

Below is a press release from the City of Fullerton.  Read it carefully and mark you calendar.

Also, here is how much money has been skimmed from the Water Fund:

 

Fiscal                              (Water Fund)

Year     Franchise Fee     Water Sales                

2001      $1,435,202          $14,342,888

2002      $1,558,578          $15,619,444

2003      $1,576,091          $15,676,902

2004      $1,775,133          $17,800,172

2005      $1,771,294          $17,499,462

2006      $2,065,417          $20,587,913

2007      $2,287,693          $22,938,001

2008      $2,278,041          $22,893,749

2009      $2,388,515          $23,967,172

2010      $2,479,930          $24,796,981

2011      $2,532,595          $25,295,986

PRESS RELEASE -

All things water in the City of Fullerton will be the focus of a special City Council study session Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2012.

The session, which will be open to the public, will be held at 4:30 p.m. in the new Conference Center at the Fullerton Main Library, 353 W. Commonwealth Ave., adjacent to Fullerton City Hall.

David Schickling, Water System Manager for Fullerton, said the workshop will cover all aspects of the City’s water utility, ranging from where Fullerton gets its water supplies to how that water is delivered to residences and businesses in the City.

The session will also examine capital improvement needs for the aging water system.

The study session, which was requested by the Council, will be a prelude to the reopening of consideration of a water rate study which was brought to Council this past July.

“The Council took no action on the study then and, instead, directed that further study be done – specifically on the public notification process and the legality of the ‘in-lieu franchise/property tax’ transfer of funds from the Water Fund to the General Fund,” Schickling explained, noting the in-lieu franchise tax has been in place since 1968.

“The results of this expanded study are nearly complete and will be available for public review beginning with a meeting of the Council-appointed Water Rate Study Ad Hoc Committee in February.” That meeting, the date of which has not yet been firmed up, will be open to the public.

Once the committee has reviewed the results of the new study and made recommendations on it, the matter is tentatively scheduled to come to the City Council for consideration in March.

Further information about the study session or the water rate study may be obtained by calling the Office of Water Engineering at Fullerton City Hall at (714) 738-6845.

Persons requiring special accommodations to attend the study session the workshops are asked to notify the Office of Water Engineering prior to Jan. 10.

Tinkering with Water Rates

Water ratepayers in San Juan Capistrano are in for a rude awakening.  A new audit of the water system's financial mismanagement predates the 2003 merger of the Capistrano Valley Water District and the City of San Juan Capistrano by six years. 

You read that correctly.  For six straight years the Capistrano Valley Water District was consistently underfunded because of the rate structure.

The dirty laundry is being aired on the pages of the OC Register and after several massive rate hikes (22% in February and 18% more in July) which the audit says aren't sufficient to cover the deficit.

According to  the Register, the audit states that the utility "also used one-time revenue from property taxes and developer fees as a stopgap funding measure, which had the effect of hiding structural funding problems."

The report indicates "poor financial communication" may have been part of the problem.

Let's head up Interstate-5 to Fullerton and look at the similarities.

Fullerton hasn't had an audit but it did have a rate study.  The rate study appears to have been nothing more than a report to justify nearly doubling water rates.  When pressed for hard data and answers on the water system's "in-lieu franchise fee" (an illegal 10% tax on the Water Fund), staff came up empty-handed.

Fullerton has been under-funding the water system since the 1960s.  Some might rightfully ask how that is possible and why.  Good questions, to be sure.  It was in the 1960s that the "in-lieu franchise fee" was put in place by a city council that actually predates Don Bankhead's tenure on the dais.  Since then, 10% of every dollar paid into the Water Fund has been skimmed and deposited into the City's General Operating Fund like a 3-year old grabbing at a cookie. 

That may not seem like a big deal but with every rate hike, the City's General Fund wins big.  Not to mention nearly 80% of the General Fund covers the benefits and salaries of employees not associated with operating or managing the water system.  It also helps to shore up the growing deficit and pension shortfall.  How is that fair?  How is that even legal?  It's not legal.  This January you'll begin to see a more vigorous campaign headed by City staff to raise rates and justify the continued skimming of the Water Fund.

The illegal "water tax" imposed on the Water Fund has reinforced the policy and subsequent affect on our infrastructure with ZERO investment.  Now, after 50 years of ignoring the problem, pillaging the coffers, and looking the other way, rate payers will be forced to pick up the tab.

Maybe I can blame my parents.  Perhaps Mom and Dad should have been banging on the doors at City Hall in the 1960s and '70s telling the City Council and City Manager to invest in the water system.  But they didn't protest City Hall, probably because they were busy raising five kids, paying a mortgage, and worried about their kids heading off to fight questionable wars in far away places.

No, I can't blame them. Like most people, they relied on their elected representatives to do the right thing.

To those who were voters in the 1960s, '70s, '80s, and '90s...here I am holding the bag.  How much is it going to cost, you ask, to make up for years of mismanagement and neglect? 

About $300-million... 

Orange County Grand Jury Compensation Survey of Water and Sanitation Districts Released

The Orange County Grand Jury has released its "COMPENSATION SURVEY OF ORANGE COUNTY WATER AND SANITATION DISTRICTS". Although the study makes no great revelation, it does suggest that these special districts may be too far removed from the hands of the constituents they serve.

Why the Grand Jury Study:
Special districts are not well understood by the public
Receive little public scrutiny

Special Water/Sanitation Districts Serving Fullerton:
Municipal Water District of Orange County
(Water only)

The District is a wholesale water management and planning agency that provides imported water to 28 water purveyors and two private water companies in a service area of over 600 square miles. These smaller entities then provide the water to residential and commercial customers. In 2001 the District consolidated with Coastal Municipal Water District of Southern California. It is the second largest member agency of the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, the agency that supplies Southern California with the majority of its imported water. It coordinates countywide water/wastewater emergency preparedness and response efforts.

Orange County Sanitation District
(Sewer only)
The District provides wastewater services for much of Orange County. Its boundaries cover 479 square miles, serving 21 cities and three special districts. The District has two operating facilities, one in Fountain
Valley, the other in Huntington Beach, treating wastewater from residential, commercial and industrial sources in central and northwest Orange County. Each day approximately 230 million gallons of wastewater is treated, enough water to fill Angel Stadium three times a day.

The 25 members of the District’s board of directors consist of elected representatives from each of the sewer agencies or cities within the Orange County Sanitation District. Thus the board members of the District are not elected directly, but are appointed by their respective agencies.

Orange County Water District
(Water only)
Despite its name, the Orange County Water District is not a water provider in the usually understood sense. Its function is to manage the underground water in Orange County, called the aquifer. Agencies pumping water from the ground in Orange County are regulated and charged by this district. The Orange County Water District also operates the Groundwater Replenishment System, a state of the art plant in Fountain Valley that purifies wastewater and injects it back into the ground for reuse.

The board of directors for this district is a hybrid of elected and appointed officials. Of the 10 board members, 7 are elected from defined service areas within the district, and 3 are appointed representatives of
the cities of Fullerton, Anaheim and Santa Ana.

Findings:
Lack of interest by the public
Some districts offer board members fulltime benefits for part-time work
Suggests minimum standards for information access on district websites

Facts:
Combined total annual revenues for the 18 water and sanitation special districts in Orange County exceed $1.3 billion.

California state law defines a special district as “any agency of the state for the local performance of governmental or proprietary functions within limited boundaries (Government Code Section 16271 (d)).

Compensation for the board of directors of water districts must be set in accordance with the California Water Code Section 20202 and for the board of directors of Sanitation Districts, in accordance with the Health and Safety Code, Section 6489.

Board of director meeting stipends for water and sanitation special districts are capped by the state. Other compensation packages for the board of directors and the general manager are set by the board of directors in each district.

Elected or appointed officers of a special district, commission or board elected or appointed after June 30, 1994 are prohibited from participating in the California Public Employees' Retirement System (CalPERS).

Recommendations:
Provide in an easily accessible format on the district’s website, data on compensation for the board of directors and general manager, as well as current budget and financial reports.
Maintain and update agendas, minutes, meeting schedules and location on the district’s website.

Fullerton's Water Rates

From an article on Elk Grove's (a Sacramento suburb) skyrocketting water rates...

Chris Brown, executive director of the California Urban Water Conservation Council, said water rates nationally are rising faster than other utilities, as water systems face infrastructure upgrades without financial reserves. He said water rates are not structured to collect infrastructure reinvestment funds.

"When pipes are 50 years old, they start to fail," Brown said. "We are faced with replacing these systems and we haven't saved money for it for the last five decades."


Read more: http://www.sacbee.com/2011/05/31/3664875/elk-grove-residents-could-face.html#ixzz1NwnwrjZX

MWDOC eCurrents News Letter

MWDOC Newsletter

_________________________________

Message from the President
By Joan C. Finnegan, MWDOC Board President

May is Water Awareness Month. Water is something that, as a society, we take for granted. It is highly regulated, legislated, and fought over. Mark Twain said it best when he said, “Whiskey is for drinking; water is for fighting.” And, in the West, this has been particularly true. Similarly, water on the international level is subject to conflict; but that conflict is often driven by scarcity and cleanliness. Did you know that one out of every six people in the world do not have access to clean, safe water? In fact, more people worldwide have cellular telephone service than have access to clean, safe water. Water Awareness is more than a month; it should be a part of our everyday life.

The Municipal Water District of Orange County (MWDOC) and the family of Orange County Water Agencies are committed to raising public awareness of water-related issues year round. MWDOC does this through a number of programs including its water education school program in partnership with the Discovery Science Center, its Water Policy Dinners, public outreach, and the annual Orange County Water Summit (Summit) in partnership with Orange County Water District and The Disneyland Resort. This year’s Summit was held on May 20th at Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel. Presentations have been posted at http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?llr=xr8waecab&et=1105689018621&s=11443&e=001ZBYd0YJCKCIN2yvzM4HEY2nL2nQpKyWu6p3qvhxjiHcYa_r-9QOmLRJDKdFCUNt28uvmzmonIIWWXqgTVhjipjd2Lr9j3-pCgI0ASKaEqBKYz0e1Tyg4Uw==. Photos and video clips will soon follow.  At 7:30 a.m. on the first Friday of every month, policy makers and community leaders gather at MWDOC for the Water Advisory Committee of Orange County (WACO) which hosts guest speakers with expertise on water management, water resource development, legislation, regulation, and numerous other areas specializing in water. If you have not joined this engaging group in the past, please consider it. The next WACO meeting is on Friday, June 3rd, and will feature Byron Buck, Executive Director of the State & Federal Contractors Water Agency.

Improving our overall water use efficiency as a region is also part of building awareness. Information, tools, and rebates for improving residential, commercial and industrial water use efficiencies are available on MWDOC’s website, http://www.mwdoc.com/.

__________________________________

The Value of Water Brought to Focus at the O.C. Water Summit
By Gina DePinto, Principal Communications Specialist, Orange County Water District 

On Friday, May 20, more than 400 people attended the 4th annual Orange County Water Summit (Summit) and heard dynamic presentations and engaging discussions about the value of water, seismic risks to California’s water supplies, the need for new and improved infrastructure, and what it takes to build water infrastructure projects during today’s tough economic times.

Presented by the Orange County Water District, Municipal Water District of Orange County and the Disneyland Resort with Title Sponsor Siemens Water Technology Corp., the O.C. Water Summit brought experts from across the country together with Southern California business professionals, water industry stakeholders, elected officials, and community leaders to discuss ongoing state water issues.

The theme of this year’s Summit was “California’s Extreme Water Makeover.” Many people think of the “Big One” as an earthquake, but one of California’s most fragile fault lines is its main water delivery system that moves water from Northern California to parts of the Central Valley, the Bay area, and Southern California. One major earthquake or heavy storm could cause levees along the delivery system to break, allowing ocean water to rush into the Sacramento-San Joaquin River and contaminate water supplies, as well as potentially cutting off the delivery of water to many parts of California. For decades, blueprints to fix California’s lifeline have been drafted and debated. If and when a plan comes together that decision makers can agree on, how can California get it financed in the face of budget cuts, especially when water is a resource that is taken for granted and is highly undervalued?

Click here to read more about the OC Water Summit.

_______________________________

Legislation Proposing Statewide Water Fee "Parked" in Senate for Additional Work
By David J. Cordero, MWDOC Director of Government Affairs 

Proposed legislation that would create a statewide fee to fund water projects and programs that provide public benefits advanced to the Senate Appropriations Committee this month, where it will remain and become a “two-year bill” so that the author may work with stakeholders and others to address issues and concerns later this year.

The March issue of eCurrents introduced its readers to Senate Bill 34 by Senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto). The bill would establish a statewide fee to provide a sustainable revenue source to fund water projects and programs that provide state and regional “public benefits.” The proposed, but yet-to-be-determined, fee amounts would be assessed to urban retail and agricultural water suppliers on a per-acre-foot and per-irrigated acre basis respectively. The California Board of Equalization would be responsible for collecting the fee and depositing the revenue into a new California Water Resources Investment Fund. Half of the revenue would be deposited in a State Investment Account and the other half would be deposited into Regional Investment Accounts.

Funds disbursed from the State Investment Account would be under the jurisdiction of the California Water Commission. Direct expenditures and grant disbursements would be handled on an annual basis in consultation with various state agencies and include:

• Operating expenses of the Delta Stewardship Council;
• Grants and expenditures to implement the Delta Stewardship Council’s Delta Plan;
• Projects of “statewide and interregional significance;”
• Projects that reduce the impacts of mercury contamination in the Delta watershed;
• Scientific studies and assessments; and
• Debt service on general obligation bonds for projects and programs that provide statewide and interregional significance.

Click here to read more about the statewide water fee proposed in SB 34 (Simitian).

___________________________________

Winter Weather Improves Water Supply Conditions; Mandatory Water Reductions Lifted.
By Warren Greco, MWDOC Water Resource Analyst

After nearly two years of mandatory water supply reductions, full imported water deliveries have been restored to residents and businesses in Southern California. On April 13, 2011, the Board of Directors of the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California (Metropolitan) voted to end its Water Supply Allocation Plan for its 26 member agencies, which encompass 19 million people from Ventura to San Diego Counties. This step by Metropolitan made it possible for the Municipal Water District of Orange County (MWDOC) to end the supply allocation plan that it had adopted for its service area in July 2009.

Metropolitan adopted mandatory water use reductions two summers ago, as water supplies were heavily constrained following both a multi-year drought and pumping restrictions being imposed in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta (Bay-Delta) to protect endangered fish species. The action to lift the Water Supply Allocation Plan was made possible by storms this past winter, as well as the continued water use efficiency efforts by residents and businesses.

This season, many parts of California have experienced near record amounts of rainfall and snowpack, and imported water supplies have improved significantly from the previous three years. Locally, Orange County has received around 21 inches of rainfall compared to a historic average of around 13 inches. Overall precipitation in the northwestern slope of the Sierra Nevada Mountains, which supplies Southern California by way of the State Water Project, is at 144 percent of the normal. The Colorado River Basin, which supplies Southern California through the Colorado River Aqueduct, received its biggest snowpack in 14 years.

Click here to read more about water supply conditions.

_______________________________________

Mesa Consolidated Water District Breaks Ground on Colored Water Treatment Facility Improvements Project
By Stacy Taylor, Public Affairs Manager, Mesa Consolidated Water District

The Mesa Consolidated Water District (Mesa Water) Board of Directors inaugurated the start of construction for its Colored Water Treatment Facility improvements project with a ceremonial groundbreaking on April 19, 2011. A live webcam of the Colored Water Treatment Facility improvements project progress is online at http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?llr=xr8waecab&et=1105689018621&s=11443&e=001ZBYd0YJCKCLw7X0CDs8MfYEIgnD25e0GaZe_AVjO7jC8u4izDDhNB-6FjKwlSTmLS8UZZR-2VLUvQiI0bGOOn6cBbmk75VGzPQkNeLo3LD-kSUlK02Qrlw== under the public information menu.

“The Colored Water Treatment Facility produces delicious, soft, high-quality water,” said Mesa Water’s Board President, Fred R. Bockmiller, Jr., P.E., “and the Facility expansion will allow Mesa Water to achieve our goal of being able to produce 100 percent of our water from local sources.”

When completed in mid-2012, Mesa Water’s improved Colored Water Treatment Facility will provide the following benefits:

• High-quality soft water;
• 50 percent more water than the previous technology while using less energy;
• Groundwater clean-up by keeping colored water from migrating into the clear water zone;
• 100 percent local water reliability.

Mesa Water closed its Colored Water Treatment Facility for improvements on December 30, 2010. The contractor completed the demolition phase in mid-April 2011, and the expanded Facility is scheduled to return to service by mid-2012, just in time for peak summer demands.

Click here to read more about Mesa Water's Colored Water Treatment Facility.

________________________________

MWDOC Celebrates the Winners of the 2011 Poster and Slogan Contest
By Melissa Covarrubias, MWDOC Public Affairs Intern

The 2011 Poster and Slogan Contest sponsored by the Municipal Water District of Orange County (MWDOC), was a success once again. This year more than 800 entries were received from Orange County students in kindergarten through sixth grade. Thirty winners were selected in total – 15 for their poster entries and 15 for their slogan entries. The winning students were recognized at a special awards ceremony on Wednesday, May 25, at the Discovery Science Center in Santa Ana.

This year’s contest theme was “Low Flow is the Way to Go!” and all of the students showed their talent through their artwork and slogans.

The grand prize winner in the Kindergarten through Third Grade level was Iris Lee from Canyon View Elementary in Irvine. Iris received a pair of annual passes to Disneyland as her grand prize. The grand prize winner in the Fourth through Sixth Grade level was Deven Nagel (poster shown above left) from La Veta Elementary in Orange. Deven received an Apple iPad as his grand prize.

Click here to read more about the MWDOC Poster and Slogan Contest.

Water Rate Increase Notice Heading to Your Mailbox

The notices will go out June 1 and will advise water rate payers that their water bills will increase as much as...6% per year every year for 5 years and then 3% every year for 5 more years.  But wait there's more! 

There will also be at least a 1.8% additional increase to cover that pesky "pass-through" cost that is a direct result of rate increases from OCWD, MWDOC, and MWD.

All of these are compounding interest rates with numerous variables that will likely increase.

Throughout the Water Rate Study process I struggled to get anyone to tell me what the actual cost is per meter.  I was told continually that the cost is really high and we just can't go there.  How expensive is it??  After hours and hours of meetings and studying I still don't have an answer. 

Here is what I do know. 

All of the "pass-through costs" related to the City's purchase of water are grossly underestimated.  I fear the actually "pass-through" cost will go up as much as 20% in just the next 2 to 3 years. 

The Water Rate Study showed a 3% increase in city employee costs could be expected despite the fact that the proposed budget shows a 3% in crease for CalPERS (pensions) for general (non-safety) employees and a 7.4% increase for safety employees.  The same proposed budget shows group benefits to increase 6.8% for non-safety employees and 7.8% for safety employees.  So, right from the start we have a glaring flaw that needs to be rectified.



Sexual harassment training is just one of the

Ethics Office accomplishments.  MWD Ethics

Office also created and provided Rumors and

Gossip training and ethical decision making

training for managers and employees.

 The Water Rate Study also shows the MWD pass-through as increasing by 6%.  However, MWD's proposed budget shows an increase of 23% for system operation as well as another 23% for construction costs.  The same MWD proposed budget shows MWD employees receiving a 12% increase in salaries and benefits and 18.4% increase in "labor costs".  The MWD budget has other fluff, such as the Ethics Office I wrote about HERE that costs rate payers $573,000 to review legislation and train employees on sexual harassment.

And the most egregious part of the Water Rate Study is the sacred franchise tax.  Most people pay their water bill believing that when they pay for that portion noted as "water" that they are in fact actually paying for the cost to purchase water and maintain the water system.  They are wrong.

First, according to the Water System Manager, we do not recover the actual cost of maintaining and delivering the water.  Hence the water rate study.



City profits from hidden tax!



Second, 10%-11% of your water bill (not your total utility bill) goes into the general fund.  The general fund is what pays for a major portion of our public safety and employee benefits such as pensions.  That 10%-11% does NOT go into the water fund.  So, when I asked the consultant from Municipal Financial Services how much the City marks up the water I was shocked that he said the City does not make any money on water sales.  Of course the City makes money, $2,486,000 is a nice chunk of change which that can only be labeled as profiteering or perhaps municipal greed. 

You see, franchise fees exist so that when a company, let's say AT&T, buries wires in the road, they have to pay a small fee to the City as rent.  That fee helps cover inspection and maintenance costs and is similar to a property tax.  That seems like a pretty rational way to deal with private entities using public right-of-way for utility systems but when the City charges its own water rate payers, it is adding insult to injury.



In the case of Fullerton's Water Rates a few things need to be made crystal clear to rate payers and to the City Council:

• First, rate payers do not pay enough to cover the actual cost of maintaining and replacing the water system.
• Second, our current water rates are based completely on consumption which is dependent on users consuming more water in order to maintain the system.  In fact, the more you conserve water, the more the City of Fullerton must raise water rates.  That's a stupid way of addressing our infrastructure.  No matter how much water you use or don't use there is a specific cost to make it available to you.  The water bill should have 2 segments: one for the fixed cost to have water available and a second segment that reflects the exact cost for water consumed.  That would be the most transparent way to address this.
• Third, the City Council must abolish the franchise tax.  I realize that it will cause a $2.5-million shortfall in the general fund but keeping the tax in place is abusive and wasteful governance.  The City Council and City Manager's Office must be reminded that they, like the rest of us, must live within our means.  That means its time to drop the $50,000 allocation for membership in the League of Cities and Southern California Association of Governments and cut out the $50,000 allocated in the Public Works Department's Capitol Improvement Program to replace window coverings at Basque Yard (see page N-10 of proposed CIP).

At a time when 1 out of 4 of your friends, family, and neighbors are out of work, we need to remind our elected representatives of their fiduciary responsibility to voters and taxpayers. 

No comment.

Your last chance to speak up is July 19 at the City Council meeting and public hearing.

Will Merging Water Districts Help or Harm Fullerton?

Earlier this month Terri Sforza wrote about a possible merger between Municipal Water District of OC and the Orange County Water District.  For years the Orange County Register has pointed out the redundant and ridiculous overlaps in these two agencies and how it makes sense for taxpayers, or rate payers depending on your view of payments to government bureaucracies.

How much money would be saved by such a merger seems to be open to debate but Sforza thinks at least $1-million right from the start.  Putting the $1-million in perspective, Sforza notes that it is just a drop in the $300-million revenue bucket for the agencies.

Currently, the Orange County Water District is a "member agency" of the MWDOC.  These multiple layers of bureaucracy removes the people, water users and voters, further from the decision-making table.  Perhaps a merger will bring Fullerton voters and water users closer to the table of managements' fiduciary responsibility to the people they serve.

As it stands, Fullerton voters get one single vote from Mayor Pro Tem Don Bankhead who represents Fullerton voters on the OCWD Board of Directors.  That is one vote out of ten cast on each issue before the Board. 

No one knows what a merger will mean for Fullerton.  All we can do is wonder if a bigger water agency equates to a better water agency for those who foot the bill.  If history has taught us anything it is that bigger government is not better government.

REMINDER:  The Water Rate Study Ad Hoc Committee's last meeting is Monday night at 6:30PM at Fullerton City Hall.  Don't be shy, we're in this together.  Speak now or pay later!

If you would like a copy of the briefing provided to the Ad Hoc Committee, please email me at GregSebourn@yahoo.com.

Fullerton Water Rates & MWDOC

Here is the latest email blast "eCurrents" from MWDOC, the agency from which the City of Fullerton buys its water. 


Message from the President
By Joan C. Finnegan, MWDOC Board President

On Friday, May 20, 2011, Municipal Water District of Orange County (MWDOC), Orange County Water District (OCWD), and the Disneyland Resort will host the fourth annual OC Water Summit at Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel in Anaheim. As President of MWDOC, I want to encourage each of you to attend and participate in this year’s summit.

The OC Water Summit is an innovative forum that tackles water supply issues and sets real solutions in motion. The event brings together experts to engage southern California business professionals, water industry stakeholders, elected officials, community leaders, scientists, environmentalists, and others in discussions about the ongoing water supply challenges facing our state and how they impact our economy and quality of life.

Online registration is available at http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?llr=xr8waecab&et=1105327706317&s=11443&e=001zO9X0Tgvtqw7VPGYssoACEpbNFfmv0j0SJ2a21chI0QN5CWE3QOK1zmP0Sydkwhn9jOOO5kMHZZRKWTbnkhEGO78UPnAlK6FtngeLDTKuPi9uB8bLHPfVg==.

This year’s program highlights include:

• Edward G. Means, Principal Investigator of “The Value of Water,” a study funded by the Water Research Foundation.
• Curt Schmutte, P.E., Engineering Consultant for the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California.
• Congressman Tom McClintock, Chairman of the House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Water and Power.
• Michael Hiltzik, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and author of Colossus: Hoover Dam and the Making of the American Century.
• Dr. Lucy Jones, Chief Scientist of the US Geological Survey Multi-Hazard Demonstration Project for Southern California

Some of our speakers have contributed articles for this issue of eCurrents that will provide prospective guests with a glimpse of what they will be presenting at the summit. For additional information about the summit or to register online, please visit http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?llr=xr8waecab&et=1105327706317&s=11443&e=001zO9X0Tgvtqw7VPGYssoACEpbNFfmv0j0SJ2a21chI0QN5CWE3QOK1zmP0Sydkwhn9jOOO5kMHZZRKWTbnkhEGO78UPnAlK6FtngeLDTKuPi9uB8bLHPfVg==.

We look forward to seeing you at the OC Water Summit on Friday, May 20, 2011 at Disney's Grand Californian Hotel.

Communicating the Value of Water: A Key Component in Establishing Public Support for Future Investments.
By Edward G. Means, Principal Investigator, Water Research Foundation "The Value of Water" Study

In the modern competitive business environment serving more and more well-informed clientele, today’s water purveyors face an unrelenting challenge of delivering recognized value through the products and services offered by them in providing safe, reliable, affordable, and secure supply of potable water. The ailing infrastructure of the nation adds to the complexity and continually requires greater levels of funding. In a poll of 71 water and wastewater utility managers and other experts, an overwhelming majority identified the need for significant additional financial resource needs to adequately address this challenge as a top issue facing water and wastewater utilities. Currently, very little Government funding is available for such efforts, and most of the utilities need to rely on financial resources from their customer base.

In order to effectively carry out their duties of continuing to deliver safe and good tasting water to their customers, water utilities continuously seek new and effective means to communicate the value of their products and services to their customer’s (general public), the community decision makers (the elected officials), and the significant influences on the decision making process (the media).

Click here to read more about The Value of Water.

Delta Seismic Risks: What is at Stake for California?
By Curt Schmutte, P.E., Engineering Consultant, Metropolitan Water District of Southern California

The Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta is the hub of California’s water system, home to a unique ecosystem and a diverse agricultural and recreational economy. This portion of California’s geography is extremely complex, highly altered, and not sustainable in its current form or function. The problems range from declining health of the Delta fish species, on-going island subsidence, potential levee failures due to earthquakes, upstream and in-Delta diversions, predicted sea level rise, water quality degradation, and urbanization.

Significant portions of Southern California’s water supplies are pumped through the Delta and are vulnerable to long-term outage due to an earthquake. The true level of risk has only been appreciated in recent years through separate efforts by university researchers and government agencies. As the Delta land surface sinks further below sea level due to farming activity, it creates a bigger hole to fill with seawater and increases Delta levee stresses. The levees were never designed to resist soil liquefaction and are very expensive to upgrade. Finally, the chances of a large shaking event striking the Delta are known to be high and increasing according to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS).

Click here to read more about Delta Seismic Risks.

California Forward Moves Closer to Finalizing its Government Reform Proposals
By David J. Cordero, MWDOC Director of Government Affairs

Last month, readers of eCurrents were made aware of two government reform efforts out of Sacramento that both placed a particular emphasis on potential changes in the governance and financing of the more than 2,000 independent special districts that exist throughout California. The first entity looking into potential reforms was the Assembly Committee on Accountability and Administrative Review (AAR). The second was California Forward, a non-profit, bi-partisan organization that was formed in 2008 to advocate for state and local government reforms, with the intention of enacting them into law either through the Legislature or the ballot box.

Representatives from California Forward have traveled throughout the state in recent months holding “Speak Up California” events for community and business leaders, elected officials, non-profit organizations, and other interested parties. These outreach events have provided California Forward with opportunities to make its case for state and local government reform, share its evolving reform framework entitled, “Making California Work Again: Restructuring State-Local Relationships,” and solicit input and secure conceptual “buy in” for its proposals.

California Forward released its final draft framework earlier this month, and a final round of regional meetings around the state (Inland Empire, Los Angeles, San Diego, Bay Area, and the Central Valley) will soon begin to again solicit stakeholder feedback.

Orange County special district and other local government officials will have an opportunity to engage California Forward in a policy dialogue about the organization’s recommendations at the meeting of the Water Advisory Committee of Orange County (WACO) on Friday, May 6, 2011. The meeting is from 7:30-9:00 a.m. in the MWDOC/OCWD Board Room (18700 Ward Street, Fountain Valley).

Click here to read more about California Forward's government reform framework and proposals.

Click here to download a copy of California Forward's reform framework (April 19, 2011), executive summary, and four-page short summary.

MWDOC Releases Draft Urban Water Management Plan
By Warren Greco, MWDOC Policy Analyst

The Municipal Water District or Orange County (MWDOC) is currently in the process of preparing its 2010 Regional Urban Water Management Plan for adoption this summer. The Urban Water Management Plan is a document required under state law to be updated every five years to ensure that water agencies across the state are planning for adequate water supplies to meet existing and future water demands in their service areas. A draft version of MWDOC’s Urban Water Management Plan has been released and can be downloaded here. A public hearing on the plan will be held during MWDOC’s regular monthly Board Meeting on May 18, 2011.

An important new requirement for the 2010 Urban Water Management Plans is the establishment of water conservation targets to achieve a 20 percent reduction in per capita water use by the year 2020, as required under the Water Conservation Act of 2009, commonly referred to as 20 by 2020. In the past year and a half, MWDOC staff has participated in various stakeholder committees charged with drafting the guidelines under the 20 by 2020 law, and we have worked to ensure that all of the water suppliers in Orange County get credit for the significant investments that they have already made in conservation and recycled water.

Click here to read more about MWDOC's Draft Urban Water Management Plan.