G E N E R A L    M A N A G E R ' S    R E P O R T

January 28, 2005

 

                              TO:            Board of Directors, PBCSD

 

                       FROM:            Richard Andrews, General Manager

 

                  SUBJECT:            Directors’ Assignments

_________________________________________________________________________

 

SUMMARY OF ISSUES

 

Traditionally, at the first meeting of the year, the Board President requests that directors review their assignments to committees and agencies with whom this District is affiliated.  Accordingly, directors are asked to express their desires to continue or not in their current assignments and, as appropriate, consider confirming new or continuing assignments.  There are currently no standing committees of the Board, however directors are assigned to serve as Board and/or District representatives on a number of interagency and District policy and advisory committees and boards.  From time to time ad hoc committees or subcommittees of the Board have been established to address special issues, although none are in existence at this time. 

 

The procedure for appointments and/or assignments of directors to committees and boards is a matter of Board discretion.  No formal procedural policy has been adopted for director assignments.  The prevailing procedure has been collegial; first with consultation occurring between the Board President and directors, and appointments usually confirmed by formal motion of the full Board.

 

RECOMMENDATIONS

 

1.      Review and consider assignment of Directors, as may be appropriate, to the following committees:

 

A.        Carmel Area Wastewater District (“CAWD”)/PBCSD Wastewater Reclamation Project Management Committee (2 regular members, 1 alternate member)

B.        PBCSD Defined Benefit Pension Plan, and Supplemental Pension Plan

       Investment Committee Trustees (2 directors or 1 “inside” director trustee and             1 non-director “outside” trustee)

C.        Del Monte Forest Property Owners Traffic and Safety Advisory Committee (1 director)

D.       Pebble Beach Advisory Committee (1 director)

E.        Monterey Regional Waste Management District and Monterey Regional Waste Management District Finance Authority (1 director)

F.         Association of California Water Agencies Joint Powers Insurance Authority   

        (“ACWA JPIA”) Board of Directors  (1 director, 1 alternate director)

G.       Monterey County Special Districts Association (1 director, 1 alternate director)

H.       CAWD Board of Directors “observer” (1 director, assignment rotated equally among directors)

 

BACKGROUND DISCUSSION

 

The following describes the various assignments of PBCSD directors.

 

CAWD/PBCSD Wastewater Reclamation Project Management Committee:

On November 1, 1990 the parties involved in financing, constructing and operating the reclamation project entered into a four-way agreement, the Construction and Operation Agreement.  These parties include the Monterey Peninsula Water Management District, Pebble Beach Company, Carmel Area Wastewater District (“CAWD”) and PBCSD.  The Agreement established the Reclamation Management Committee, which has policy setting and fiscal oversight responsibilities for the reclamation project.  In the recently approved Amended and Restated Construction and Operation Agreement for implementation of the Expanded Reclamation Project (Phase II), the Management Committee’s oversight and policy-setting responsibilities have been extended to the construction and operation of the new improvements, Forest Lake Reservoir in PBCSD and the Reverse Osmosis / Advanced Treatment Facilities in CAWD.  Committee membership is comprised of two representatives from CAWD and PBCSD and one representative of the PBCo.  Since establishment of the Committee, CAWD and PBCSD have always selected their Management Committee representatives from members of the respective districts’ boards of directors.  The Reclamation Management Committee usually meets bimonthly, with occasional special meetings also required.  PBCSD’s representatives in 2004 were directors Hornbuckle and Hendrick, and Director Laska served as the Board’s alternate representative.  As Director Hendrick will be leaving the Board one PBCSD position on the Committee will be vacant. 

 

PBCSD Employees’ Supplemental Pension Plan Investment Committee:

In 1994 the Supplemental Employee Pension Plan for  PBCSD employees was established in-lieu of participation in the federal social security system.  Under the Supplemental Pension Plan, which is financed from employer and employee contributions equivalent to Social Security, employees may place their accumulated employer contributions (net of the premiums for long-term disability, life insurance and Medicare) under the purview of the PBCSD Investment Committee.  Alternatively, they may leave all of their funds with the pension plan administrator, ING Financial, and designate investments from a family of mutual funds offered by ING.  Currently, 6 of the District’s 11 regular employees are participating in the Investment Committee’s investment program, which currently has a portfolio valued at about $252,000.  The Investment Committee meets monthly and may occasionally hold a special meeting.  Trustee business regarding both the Defined Benefit Pension Plan and the Supplemental Pension Plan is usually scheduled concurrently with Investment Committee meetings.

 

For many years two PBCSD directors were designated to serve as trustees for both pension plans and as members of the Investment Committee. Two PBCSD employees, the General Manager and the Finance Officer, also serve on the Committee.  In the past, the Board once appointed one of its members as an “inside” trustee and someone from the community as an “outside” trustee.  In 2002, the Board re-designated both trustee positions as “inside” trustee positions.  Current trustee/investment committee members are PBCSD Directors Hendrick and Laska, who also serve as the designated trustees for the PBCSD Employee Defined Benefit Pension Plan that is fully funded by the District and administered by ING Financial.  Employees only participate in investment decisions related to the Supplemental Pension Plan, and not the Defined Benefit Plan, which is fully funded by the District.  The Board’s two director trustees make all decisions regarding the Defined Benefit Pension Plan, with input from the Plan Administrator, consulting actuarial and district staff.  As the Defined Benefit Plan is being phased out, over time, in lieu of the District’s participation in a CalPERS Pension Plan, it is expected that there will be fewer obligations associated with serving as a Trustee of the Defined Benefit Plan.  Director Hendrick will be leaving the Board, so it will be necessary to designate another Director to serve as a Trustee of the Defined Benefit Pension Plan and as member of the PBCSD Investment Committee of the Supplemental Pension Plan.

 

Del Monte Forest Property Owners  (“DMFPO”) Traffic and Safety Advisory Committee:

The Del Monte Forest Property Owners established a seat for PBCSD on the DMFPO Traffic and Safety Advisory Committee, which, as the name implies, is advisory to the DMFPO Board.  The Traffic and Safety Advisory Committee studies projects and issues related to transportation and security within the Forest, considers information, recommendations and complaints from residents and offers advice to the DMFPO Board and the Pebble Beach Company (“PBCo”).  The Committee was established by the DMFPO to provide consultation and coordination with the PBCo and Monterey County, and helps PBCo meet its responsibilities under the 1984 Del Monte Forest Land Use Plan (“DMF LUP”) and policy agreements entered into between the County and the PBCo for implementation of the DMF LUP. The Committee reviews and makes recommendations to the DMFPO Board and the PBCo on such matters as the need and specifications for road and intersection improvement projects, traffic enforcement regulations and policies, traffic impacts related to development projects and security matters.  The Committee meets monthly, on the last Tuesday of the month, except in December.  Director McCullough served on this committee in 2004. 

 

The PBCSD General Manager has been designated by DMFPO to serve as a non-voting “resource” member of the Committee.

 

Pebble Beach Community Advisory Committee:

One director, traditionally the Board President or Vice President, is assigned by the President to attend a quarterly meeting of this committee, which is organized and staffed by the Pebble Beach Company.  Infrequently, when no PBCSD Directors have been available, the General Manager has represented PBCSD at Advisory Committee meetings. Establishment of the Committee was required by an agreement between Monterey County and PBCo to implement the 1984 Del Monte Forest Land Use Plan and Local Coastal Program.  Underlying the requirement is the recognition that the area is a gated community wherein the Pebble Beach Company has assumed a number of important municipal-type public service responsibilities; i.e. maintenance of roads, forest and coastal shoreline, storm water drainage and so forth.  The primary purpose of this advisory committee is to share information and to provide feedback to the Pebble Beach Company from various community-based organizations, including this District.  The PBCSD representative who attends these meetings is responsible for providing brief summary comments about the most important issues or actions of PBCSD and to bring back to the Board pertinent information shared by others who participate in the Pebble Beach Advisory Committee meetings.

 

Association of California Water Agencies Joint Powers Insurance Authority (“ACWA JPIA”) Board of Directors

The ACWA JPIA was established in 1979 to provide liability insurance coverage tailored to the needs of California local government agencies that provide water and related local government services.  The organizational concept is to share risk and costs, through several layers of coverage: (1) a self-insured layer, 2) a layer pooled among participating agencies, and 3) a layer of group purchased commercial excess insurance.  The most important coverages include auto, general liability, special dam failure, property damage or loss and workers compensation.  Participating organizations must meet minimum standards of risk management in order to be approved for coverage in any of the insurance programs by the JPIA.  The JPIA has become a model governmental risk management organization that provides excellent insurance coverage to its membership at comparatively reasonable prices.  Each participating agency Board must name a member of its Board of Directors to serve on the ACWA JPIA’s Board of Directors.  Executive level management staff of the agency may be appointed to serve as alternate directors.  The JPIA Board of Directors normally meets twice each year, in conjunction with ACWA’s semi-annual conferences in the Spring and Fall.  For many years Director Hendrick was PBCSD’s director on the JPIA Board and the General Manager has served as the District’s alternate director.  When Director Hendrick stepped down from this assignment about two years ago the PBCSD director position on the JPIA Board was unfilled until PBCSD Director, Rick Verbanec accepted the assignment last April after he was appointed to the PBCSD Board. 

 

Monterey County Special Districts Association

On June 13, 2002, by-laws for this organization were approved by a majority of independent special district representatives and the organization became operational in 2003.  The purpose of the Association is to provide a forum for District directors and managers to communicate with the special district representatives they have elected to serve on the Local Agency Formation Commission of Monterey County; and, to afford opportunities for districts to discuss and formulate strategies regarding issues they face on a local, state or federal level.  The Association has affiliated with the California Special Districts Association (“CSDA”) as a Monterey County Chapter of CSDA.  However, CSDA membership is not required for any Monterey County special district to participate in the local association.  Director Laska is presently designated as PBCSD’s representative to the Association and Director McCullough is the alternate representative. The Association has been holding quarterly dinner meetings at Fort Ord.  District managers and fire chiefs are associate, non-voting representatives.  Various districts’ staff members provide staff assistance to the Association on a voluntary basis.

 

CAWD Board Meetings “Observer”

The CAWD owns and operates wastewater treatment and disposal facilities, and has contracted with PBCSD to reserve one-third of its treatment capacity to this District.  The terms of the contract require PBCSD to share one-third of all treatment plant capital costs and to pay for treatment and disposal costs on the basis of flow.  The original contract was executed in 1969 and amended in 1978 and 1994, the latter amendment being a comprehensive renegotiation of the whole contract.  During the earlier years of the relationship between CAWD (previously, “Carmel Sanitary District”) and PBCSD (prior to 1982,”Pebble Beach Sanitary District”) the relationship was at times contentious, even litigious.  In an attempt to improve the relationship the two governing boards agreed in the late 1970’s that they would each assign a director and the district’s general manager

to attend the districts’ board meetings, in order to keep informed and improve communications.  That tradition has continued and matured over the years, and has contributed significantly to the development of a very cohesive working relationship between the two Boards and their staffs.  Both Boards have always rotated the assignment among directors on an equal basis, although the frequency of assigned meetings and the individuals assigned are discretionary decisions of the Board.      

 

Monterey Regional Waste Management District (“MRWMD”):

Following your Board’s recommendation, on December 19, 2003 the MRWMD Board appointed Director Laska to serve on the MRWMD Board of Directors as an “at-large” director for a four-year term, beginning January 1, 2004.  In addition, your Board has appointed Director Laska to serve concurrently on the MRWMD (financing) Authority Board.  Director Laska’s terms as director on the District and Authority Boards will expire December 31, 2007.  The MRWMD Board meets monthly on the third Friday of the month and the Authority Board meets infrequently, but usually on the same day as the District Board.

 

The MRWMD provides landfill and recycling services for all Monterey Peninsula cities, and unincorporated areas of northern Monterey County, Carmel Valley, the Big Sur coast and this District.  In December 1995 the MRWMD offered PBCSD membership on the Board of the newly formed MRWMD Authority, which was created to provide public financing for major capital improvements at the MRWMD landfill.  In addition, the MRWMD appointment of PBCSD Director Laska fills an “at-large” seat on the District governing body.  The appointment of an at-large director to the MRWMD Board of Directors is the discretionary responsibility of that governing body, as no specific local government entity is named in the MRWMD’s state enabling act.    

 

RA