As part of Noozhawk’s Nov. 3 election coverage, we are publishing Q&As with board candidates for some special districts and education districts, including the Goleta Water District.
Candidate answers may have been lightly edited for spelling and formatting, but are otherwise presented as they were submitted.
The Goleta Water District is an independent special district governed by a five-member elected Board of Directors.
The general manager and staff members oversee day-to-day operations of the district, such as repairing and maintaining pipes, pumps, wells, water meters and other infrastructure; water quality testing; and customer service (billing, conservation, applications for new water meters).
Separate special districts oversee treatment of wastewater from the water district system: the Goleta Sanitary District and Goleta West Sanitary District.
Goleta Water District board members approve the district budget, including maintenance and capital improvement projects, approve water rates and charges, and are in charge of policy decisions like water supply planning and conservation strategies.
Recent board policy and budget decisions include: approving large, multi-year rate increases for residential and non-residential water customers; updating a permit to sell recycled water to interested agricultural customers; and saying no to the state’s proposed water tunnel project, along with several other local water agencies.
Candidate Bill Rosen
Noozhawk: Why are you running for the Goleta Water District Board of Directors?
Bill Rosen: I am running for re-election as a director of the Goleta Water District Board because it is an opportunity to serve my community, I enjoy the work and I feel that I am giving back.
I was elected in 2008 on a platform of openness and transparency. I was unopposed in 2012. I won election in 2016.
During those terms substantial progress was made in changing the way the Goleta Water Board operated.
We approved policies and procedures that permitted directors to get issues on an agenda, created an appeal process to permit review of general manager decisions without court appearances, developed a fair leak adjustment plan, created a simple index of board actions so that no one need read minutes, changed water allocations from the beginning of a project to the end of the project when the scope of the final project was known, and provided safe potable water.
Noozhawk: What personal and/or work experience would you bring to the organization?
Rosen: I am a retired upstate New York attorney with broad experience in local government. I served as board member and counsel to a small private water company and a national bank. I was a political committee member, a civil grand jury member, a film festival board member, homeowner association board president and held various positions in these organizations.
My private practice also mirrored my other professional activities dealing real estate, government counselling and financial services.
I was the county attorney of Sullivan County, New York, with a staff of attorneys that handled all of the duties related to advice and counsel to the Board of Supervisors and all of the departments and agencies of the government. Work included drafting of laws and resolutions, contracts, labor relations, litigation and arbitrations, legal opinions, budgeting including all related to the position.
With respect to labor, I negotiated with a broad range of employees and unions including civil service, nurses, law enforcement, college staff, and public works. We achieved a fair working relationship with all employee unions while at the same time implementing changes in worker benefits that reduced costs to the county. I represented the county’s agency that was involved with attracting business to the county along with the creation of jobs.
I served five consecutive terms as Board President of Goleta Water District. As part of my service to the Goleta Water District, I was the district representative on the Central Coast Water Authority, the agency that manages State Water Project water in Santa Barbara.
I attempted to change the method of voting on CCWA so that the South Coast water agencies would have a say in the approval of important legislation. For example, a budget can be adopted by two agencies without the affirmative vote of any South Coast agencies.
At CCWA voting power is apportioned by percent of water allocation, but I felt that the vote should be apportioned by population since water is a political issue that affects the availability of water to all people. When water is scarce, the policies that should govern are those related to people and not the amount of water purchased.
I was a board member of the Association of California Water Agencies (ACWA), the principal advocate for public water agencies. I was the chair and vice chair of Region 5 of ACWA. The experience gave me a broad view of the issues that confront all water agencies in the state that deal with water.
During my term, one of the major accomplishments of ACWA was the defeat of the imposition of a state water tax. I was the district representative to ACWA/Joint Powers Insurance Authority, the public agency that insures water agencies.
I urge the voters not to ignore the experience and knowledge that the incumbent directors have in this critical time of pandemic and economic downturn. Directors may have disagreements and concerns that vary but the process of representing a diverse community requires skills and knowledge accumulated from service to the district.
There are candidates who are not incumbents seeking election and who know little about the district and have never attended a meeting in person or online.
Noozhawk: What do you see as the top issue facing the district right now, and how would you address it?
Rosen: There are several issues that I have supported in this election:
» Sustainable supply of safe, potable water. The District has been effective in providing a sustainable supply of safe, potable water. The district has adopted a long-term sustainability plan involving economic, environmental and social elements. The plan involves complex actions related to investment, improvement and enhancement operations.
The plan incorporates improved reliability of equipment, interactions with customers and careful management of assets to insure adequate safe water resources. Relying on desalination, stormwater and other alternatives are expensive as are more traditional alternatives such as expanding storage and adding wells and other supply sources.
» Approval of a new method of electing directors. The most significant action being considered by the board is the permanent change from at-large election of directors where all residents vote for all candidates who are running for director to a division-based election system in which each director runs in a division and is voted on by the residents of the division. This change will affect every resident of the district.
The population base of the district is about 33% Latino, more than enough to require divisions under the California Voting Rights Act. As implemented in other districts and cities, it has resulted in greater diversification of the representation of the community.
I fought for use of a standing committee involving all board members to guide the transition and ensure that not only did all directors participate but also urge greater promotion and outreach to the community for participation in the process.
» Digital metering of water accounts. Digital water meters are more effective than current meters which the district states more accurately measure water flow rates, allowing the district to better account for all water use and lessen unaccounted water loss.
Currently there are about 1,500 digital meters monitoring larger customers of the district. The meters report usage of water automatically, just like the electric and gas meters at your house.
This system works well. Unfortunately, there are 15,000 accounts that use old-style meters read by employees like in the old horse and buggy days. There was a plan to replace all meters but it was defunded.
The current plan is to replace about 3,000 meters during the current five-year cycle at a cost of $1.3 million. Under this plan, it would take 25 years to complete the replacement of all meters. During this five-year plan, it is estimated that it will cost $4.6 million just to read the meters. This does not seem logical. With digital meters everyone should be able to conveniently monitor water use on their phone or computer.
Noozhawk: The current board of directors recently approved water rate increases of 11 percent this year, 9 percent in 2022, 9 percent in 2023, and 9 percent in 2024.
Do you approve of the recent increases, and why?
Rosen: I did not agree with the rate increase as adopted in June. I voted against it. This was a very difficult year for public agencies. All of the factors involving rates had to be considered including factors that were unknown at the time the board had to act.
No one could know the length of the pandemic or the extent of the financial difficulties to be encountered. No one could contemplate the impact on each resident and rate payer. These concerns colored my view of the issues presented.
There were two alternatives considered by the board, one with a debt factor and another without a debt factor. The 5-year increase annually under the debt plan was 16%, 14%, 2%, 2%, and 2%. The increase under the non-debt plan was 19%, 11%, 9%, 9%, and 9%.
The aggregate increase under the debt plan over five years would be about 44% while the non-debt plan increase would be about 73%. The rate plan will raise about $247 million over the five-year period.
While many persons do not favor debt, when debt is part of an infrastructure plan it has the effect of lowering the water rates because it spreads the cost of the infrastructure plan out over the life of the improvement to all people who get the benefit of the improvement. Similar to purchasing a house with a mortgage.
There is an interest charge but that is the way debt is managed for large public improvements. I was also concerned that even with rates adopted there could be a debt factor added, and it is unlikely that rates would be lowered at any time during the five-period.
The rates included an infrastructure improvement plan with a cost of $50 million, $20 million more than the last infrastructure improvement plan. These rate plan uses these costs. I felt that consideration of the impact of the increases on each resident in a pandemic and economic downturn should have been factored into the action.
The adopted plan reduces reserves available for unexpected expenses.
The district did need a rate increase. Utilities must operate an entire system and cannot shut down a portion if revenues are reduced because of conservation and other factors. The district also needs to maintain its assets and equipment. The question is by how much. I suggested alternatives including cost cutting and different plans.
Noozhawk: How do you think the agency handled the financial and water supply challenges of the drought?
Rosen: The district responded quickly and effectively to the drought emergency. Management did a very good job maintaining the district finances and water supply during the drought.
Water resources involved a complicated combination of ground water, state water, recycled water and purchased water in a time when supplies at Cachuma and other sources were curtailed. Water quality was a significant and expensive cost that was incurred.
Financially, the district’s finances were supported by the surcharge added to regular water rate that made up for the reduction in water sales resulting from the fabulous conservation of water by district customers during the drought. While I supported the surcharge, I believe that it tended to become unfair as the drought was ending at a time when water use was increasing.
Finally, when dealing with water, every drop counts.
Click here for more information about Bill Rosen.
Click here to read more stories in the Noozhawk Election 2020 section.
Noozhawk has published election Q&As with other Goleta Water District board candidates including: