HomeMy WebLinkAbout12-16-2009 Steering Committee Agenda Packet AGENDA
REGULAR MEETING OF THE STEERING COMMITTEE
ORANGE COUNTY SANITATION DISTRICT
WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 16, 2009 AT 5:30 P.M.
ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICE
10844 Ellis Avenue
Fountain Valley, California 92708-7018
www.ocsd.com
DECLARATION OF QUORUM
PUBLIC COMMENTS
REPORT OF COMMITTEE CHAIR
REPORT OF GENERAL MANAGER
• North County Collections Yard Update
REPORT OF GENERAL COUNSEL
ACTION ITEMS
1. Approve minutes of the November 18, 2009 Steering Committee meeting.
2. Recommend to the Board of Directors to: a) Approve the Five-Year Strategic Plan dated
November 2009; and,
b) Direct staff to implement goals and strategies contained in the Plan.
INFORMATION ITEMS
3. Public Affairs Monthly Update (Gold)
December 16, 2009
CLOSED SESSION
During the course of conducting the business set forth on this agenda as a regular meeting of the Steering
Committee, the Chair may convene the Committee in closed session to consider matters of pending real
estate negotiations, pending or potential litigation, or personnel matters, pursuant to Government Code
Sections 54956.8, 54956.9, 54957 or 54957.6, as noted.
Reports relating to(a)purchase and sale of real property; (b)matters of pending or potential litigation; (c)
employment actions or negotiations with employee representatives; or which are exempt from public
disclosure under the California Public Records Act, may be reviewed by the Directors during a permitted
closed session and are not available for public inspection. At such time as final actions are taken by the
Board on any of these subjects, the minutes will reflect all required disclosures of information.
Convene in closed session, if necessary.
4. A. Convene in closed session.
CONFERENCE WITH LABOR NEGOTIATORS
(Government Code Section 54957(b)(1))
1. Agency Designated Representatives: James D. Ruth, General Manager; Robert
Ghirelli, Assistant General Manager; Lorenzo Tyner, Director of Finance and
Administrative Services; Jeff Reed, Human Resources and Employee Relations
Manager; and Paul Loehr, Human Resources Supervisor.
2. Employee Organizations: a). Orange County Employees Association; b).
International Union of Operating Engineers, Local 501; and c). Supervisors,
Professional Management Team (part of Peace Officers Council of California).
B. Reconvene in regular session.
C. Consideration of action, if any, on matters considered in closed session.
OTHER BUSINESS AND COMMUNICATIONS OR SUPPLEMENTAL AGENDA ITEMS, IF ANY
ADJOURNMENT
The next Steering Committee meeting is scheduled for January 27, 2010 at 5:30 p.m.
December 16, 2009
Agenda Posting: In accordance with the requirements of California Government Code Section 54954.2,this
agenda has been posted in the main lobby of the District's Administrative offices not less than 72 hours prior
to the meeting date and time above. All public records relating to each agenda item, including any public
records distributed less than 72 hours prior to the meeting to all, or a majority of all, of the members of
District's Board,are available for public inspection in the office of the Clerk of the Board,located at 10844 Ellis
Avenue, Fountain Valley, California.
Items Not Posted: In the event any matter not listed on this agenda is proposed to be submitted to the
Committee for discussion and/or action, it will be done in compliance with Section 54954.2(b) as an
emergency item or because there is a need to take immediate action,which need came to the attention of the
Committee subsequent to the posting of agenda, or as set forth on a supplemental agenda posted in the
manner as above, not less than 72 hours prior to the meeting date.
Public Comments: Any member of the public may address the Steering Committee on specific agenda
items or matters of general interest. As determined by the Chair, speakers may be deferred until the
specific item is taken for discussion and remarks may be limited to three minutes.
Matters of interest addressed by a member of the public and not listed on this agenda cannot have action
taken by the Committee except as authorized by Section 54954.2(b).
Consent Calendar: All matters placed on the consent calendar are considered as not requiring discussion
or further explanation, and unless a particular item is requested to be removed from the consent calendar
by a Director of staff member, there will be no separate discussion of these items. All items on the
consent calendar will be enacted by one action approving all motions, and casting a unanimous ballot for
resolutions included on the consent calendar. All items removed from the consent calendar shall be
considered in the regular order of business.
The Committee Chair will determine if any items are to be deleted from the consent calendar.
Items Continued: Items may be continued from this meeting without further notice to a Committee
meeting held within five (5) days of this meeting per Government Code Section 54954.2(b)(3).
Meeting Adjournment: This meeting may be adjourned to a later time and items of business from this agenda
may be considered at the later meeting by Order of Adjournment and Notice in accordance with Government
Code Section 54955 (posted within 24 hours).
Accommodations for the Disabled: The Board of Directors Meeting Room is wheelchair accessible. If you
require any special disability related accommodations, please contact the Orange County Sanitation District
Clerk of the Board's office at(714)593-7130 at least 72 hours prior to the scheduled meeting. Requests must
specify the nature of the disability and the type of accommodation requested.
Notice to Committee Members:
For any questions on the agenda or to place any items on the agenda, Committee members should contact the
Committee Chair or Clerk of the Board ten days in advance of the Committee meeting.
Committee Chair: Doug Davert (714)318-9550
General Manager: James D. Ruth (714)593-7110
General Counsel: Brad Hogin (714)415-1006
Clerk of the Board: Penny Kyle (714)593-7130
E-mail: pkyle(a)ocsd.com
STEERING COMMITTEE Meeting Date To Bd. of Dir.
12/16/09 12/16/09
AGENDA REPORT Item Number Item Number
2
Orange County Sanitation District
FROM: James D. Ruth, General Manager
Originator: Robert P. Ghirelli, Assistant General Manager
Project Managers: Barbara Collins and Michael Gold
GENERAL MANAGER'S RECOMMENDATION
1) Approve the Five-Year Strategic Plan dated December 2009; and,
2) Direct staff to implement goals and strategies contained in the Plan.
SUMMARY
Note: At the November 18 board meeting the five-year strategic plan was presented for
approval by the Board of Directors. One of the four new goals proposed in the Plan was
the Communications Initiative. This element of the plan was discussed and several
board members felt it was not the right time to undertake this work, given the economic
situation and the financial challenges many of our member agencies are facing in their
own communities. Accordingly, the Strategic Plan was revised to reflect this change by
eliminating the Communications Initiative from the document. The revised plan is
presented tonight for your consideration.
The strategic plan has been updated for 2010 and contains a summary of
accomplishments over the past year as well as levels of service and new goals. The
plan includes OCSD's mission, vision and core values and does not carry any additional
costs associated with the new goals.
PRIOR COMMITTEE/BOARD ACTIONS
November 18, 2009: The Board of Directors requested further review and
reconsideration of the Strategic Plan at the December 16 meeting.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Strategic Plan Update Process
In 2007, the Board of Directors held a series of workshops to develop a Five-Year
Strategic Plan containing not only goals and levels of service, but also updated
statements of mission, vision and core values. The three month process culminated in
adoption of a new plan in November 2007. The plan was updated with new goals in
November 2008 following a strategic planning workshop.
Form No.DW-102.1 Agenda Report—Board
Revised: 09/01/2009
Page 1
To update the plan for 2010, the executive management team met in July 2009 to
discuss preliminary ideas and suggestions for updates to the plan. These suggested
goals were discussed at a joint meeting of department heads and managers in August.
Following this meeting, the issues were distilled into four new goals proposed for the
next five years. Staff drafted one-page issue papers for each goal that were presented
to the Board of Directors.
Board Input
On October 21, the Board of Directors participated in a workshop to discuss the four
new goals. The well-attended meeting generated some comments and questions.
While the discussion did not yield any new goals or significant modification of existing
plans, several board members had comments and questions. A summary of the
comments (and staff responses) is presented below:
Goal 1—Leadership Development. There was board consensus on this item with the
suggestion that if the program is successful, consideration be given to opening the
program to participation by other Orange County agencies.
Goal 2—Communications. After much discussion about the need for and scope of a
branding initiative proposed by staff, the Board reached consensus support for recasting
this goal as a communications initiative that would refresh and refocus existing outreach
materials, explore emerging social media technology, and upgrade the website.
Goal 3—Chemical Sustainability. There was board consensus for moving forward on
this goal with a request to include measurable goals and benchmarks in the chemical
sustainability plan.
Goal 4—Cost Recovery. There was board consensus on this goal. Board Members
requested that the GAP water project be included in the review and that OCSD continue
to maintain its leadership role in regional issues such as the FOG (fats, oil, grease)
control program and regional organizations such as the Southern California Coastal
Water Research Project.
Finally, the Board asked staff to continue with implementation of the Cooperative
Projects Program to help local agencies correct sewer infiltration problems. Staff noted
that while the program will end this year, we will consider worthwhile projects on a case-
by-case basis as they are brought to our attention by local agency sponsors.
Continual Improvement
In addition to the new goals (marked "new" in the plan) there are some other minor
changes from last year's plan. One outdated level of service target for the collection
system was deleted and the level of service lost work day rate target value was made
more stringent.
Overall, the updated Strategic Plan continues OCSD's goal of moving from good to
great through annual assessments and incremental changes. Each year, the Board will
Form No.DW-102.1 Agenda Report—Board
Revised: 09/01/2009
Page 2
be asked to provide strategic leadership and guidance to District staff for setting goals
and levels of service.
The Steering Committee and Board are asked to adopt the new Five-Year strategic
plan, which contains no new costs and will help guide the strategic direction of the
organization and staff.
CEQA
N/A
BUDGET / DELEGATION OF AUTHORITY COMPLIANCE
N/A
Form No.DW-102.1 Agenda Report—Board
Revised: 09/01/2009
Page 3
STEERING COMMITTEE Meeting Date To Bd. of Dir.
12/16/2009
AGENDA REPORT Item Number Item Number
3
Orange County Sanitation District
FROM: James D. Ruth, General Manager
Originator: Michael Gold, Public Affairs Manager
SUBJECT: Public Affairs Monthly Update
GENERAL MANAGER'S RECOMMENDATION
Information Only
SUMMARY
This report is the monthly Public Affairs Division update that includes legislative and
political information from Washington, D.C. and Sacramento, lobbyists' activities, and
outreach education and communication programs to member cities, employees and the
public.
PRIOR COMMITTEE/BOARD ACTIONS
None
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Federal Legislative Report
Eric Sapirstein, ENS Resources
Federal political update
At the end of November, staff worked to submit our requests through Congress for the
upcoming Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) 2010 legislation. This year,
OCSD has one request, which is a technical amendment to clarify the Santa Ana River
Interceptor (SARI) line relocation cost responsibility.
In 2007, staff successfully included the SARI relocation in WRDA as a backup measure
in the event state flood subvention funds were unavailable. The legislative change
increased the overall authorization by $100 million and added the SARI as a component
of the total Santa Ana Mainstem Flood Control Project.
Subsequently, the Army Corps of Engineers made the determination that absent
specific language, the SARI relocation would be treated as a utility relocation and could
not be counted as part of the local cost match.
This issue is very important.
For any Army Corps project, a 35 percent local match is required and after the project is
complete, the Corps calculates how much was spent by the local agencies and how
much they spent so if more than 35 percent local share was spent, it will be reimbursed.
By adding the SARI relocation to the local share portion, it opens the door for possible
reimbursement and greatly aids the County in terms of how much it has to contribute.
The technical change would specify that the SARI relocation is a construction project
and part of the overall Santa Ana Mainstem Flood Control Project. This change would
cost no money and is being supported by Congressmen Miller and Calvert. We also
submitted the request through Congresswoman Sanchez and Congressman
Rohrabacher.
Outreach, Education and Communication Activities
Honor Walk Update
This is the last call for Honor Walk nominations. Any Board member wishing to
nominate a former Board Member or retired staff member is encouraged to submit their
nominations soon. .
Wastewater 101 Video Complete
The training video that walks viewers through the entire wastewater treatment process,
the Wastewater 101 Video, is now complete. This video follows a similar theme to the
original video produced earlier that describes what we do, but goes into much greater
detail. All Directors will be provided copies of this new video.