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HomeMy WebLinkAbout09-28-2011 Steering Committee Agenda Packet Wednesday, September 28, 2011 Orange County Sanitation District ��:"""� :� 5:00 P.M. Regular Meeting of the r Administration Building Steering Committee Conference Rooms A & B - 10844 Ellis Avenue y Fountain Valley, CA 92708 (714) 593-7130 AGENDA DECLARATION OF QUORUM: PUBLIC COMMENTS: If you wish to speak,please complete a Speaker's Form and give it to the Clerk of the Board. Speakers are requested to limit comments to three minutes. REPORTS: The Committee Chair and the General Manager may present verbal reports on miscellaneous matters of general interest to the Directors. These reports are for information only and require no action by the Directors. CONSENT CALENDAR: 1. Approve minutes of the August 24, 2011 Steering Committee Meeting. ACTION ITEMS: No action items. INFORMATION ITEMS: 2. Public Affairs Report CLOSED SESSION: During the course of conducting the business set forth on this agenda as a regular meeting of the Board, the Chair may convene the Board 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 54957.61 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 Board during a permitted closed session and are not available for public inspection. At such time as the Board takes final action on any of these subjects, the minutes will reflect all required disclosures of information. 09/28/11 Steering Committee Agenda Page 1 of 3 Convene in closed session. (1) CONFERENCE WITH LEGAL COUNSEL RE. EXISTING LITIGATION (Government Code Section 54956.9(a)) Case: Mladen Buntich Construction Company v. Orange County Sanitation District; OCSD v., Buntich Cross-Claim, Orange County Superior Court Case No. 00491934 (2) CONFERENCE WITH LEGAL COUNSEL RE. ANTICIPATED LITIGATION (Government Code Section 54956.9(b)) Significant Exposure to Litigation Number of Potential Cases: 2 Claim of Kiewit Infrastructure West re. Secondary Activated Sludge Facility Claim of Shea Construction re. Trickling Filters at Plant No. 2, Job No. P2-90 (3) CONFERENCE WITH LEGAL COUNSEL RE. INITIATION OF LITIGATION (Government Code Section 54956.9(c)) Number of Potential Cases: 1 Potential litigation against the Santa Ana Watershed Project Authority to collect unpaid invoice amounts. (4) CONFER WITH DISTRICT NEGOTIATORS (Government Code Section 54954.5(f)) ( Agency Designated Representative: James D. Ruth, General Manager ( Employees: OCSD Executive Management Team (5) CONFER WITH DISTRICT NEGOTIATORS (Government Code Section 54954.5(f)) ( Agency Designated Representatives: James D. Ruth, General Manager; Robert Ghirelli, Assistant General Manager; Jim Herberg, Assistant General Manager; and, Jeff Reed, Director of Human Resources. ( Employees: OCSD Managers' Group and Confidential Employees (6) PUBLIC EMPLOYEE PERFORMANCE EVALUATION (Government Code Section 54957(b)(1)) Title: General Manager 09/28/11 Steering Committee Agenda Page 2 of 3 Reconvene in regular session. 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 Wednesday, October 26, 2011, at 5:00 p.m. Accommodations for the Disabled: Meeting Rooms are 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. Agenda Posting: In accordance with the requirements of California Government Code Section 54954.2,this agenda has been posted outside the main gate of the Sanitation District's Administration Building located at 10844 Ellis Avenue, Fountain Valley,California,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 the Board of Directors, are available for public inspection in the office of the Clerk of the Board. NOTICE TO DIRECTORS: To place items on the agenda for the Committee Meeting, items must be submitted to the Clerk of the Board 14 days before the meeting. Maria E.Ayala Clerk of the Board (714)593-7130 mayala(@ocsd.com 09/28/11 Steering Committee Agenda Page 3 of 3 STEERING COMMITTEE Meeting Date To Bd. of Dir. 09/28/11 AGENDA REPORT Item Number Item Number 2 Orange County Sanitation District FROM: James D. Ruth, General Manager Originator: Michael Gold, Public Affairs Manager SUBJECT: Public Affairs 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. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION Public Affairs Update On the road and in your community The Public Affairs team has been busy the past month speaking to a number of groups throughout our service area, including: ( Anaheim Rotary Club ( Fullerton Positive ( Los Alamitos/Seal Beach Rotary Club ( Fountain Valley Rotary Club ( Brea Rotary Club ( Cal State Long Beach ( Brea Kiwanis Club ( Yorba Linda Rotary Club ( Tustin Kiwanis Club ( Fullerton Chamber of Commerce The presentations are part of OCSD's outreach program to discuss what we do and how we protect the environment. We continue to schedule presentations with community groups, such as Chambers of Commerce and Rotary Clubs. If you would like a member of the Public Affairs team to speak with a community group, please contact us. Page 1 of 5 Grants update This month we received word that the State Department of Water Resources finally approved the Proposition 84 Integrated Regional Management Plan grants, meaning OCSD's grant through SAWPA for $1 million has been approved. We will be working with SAWPA to execute the final grant agreements. Staff reviewed additional grant opportunities this month, including one through the AmeriCorps program that we determined was not feasible; however, we are looking into another grant through EPA for outreach and education programs. This grant provides up to $150,000 that is sub-awarded to others for outreach and education programs. We are evaluating our tour and sewer science programs to determine if we are eligible to apply. Outreach records We set an agency record this year for tours reaching an all-time high number of 2,194 tour guests visiting OCSD in fiscal year 2010-11. We also reached 1,300 guests through the speakers' bureau and participated in ten community events. As our communication through the web and social media grows, we expect our tour and speaker numbers to grow next year. One item of note, as a result of Facebook, more guests are coming on our monthly open tours. Federal Legislative Update Legislative Advocate: Eric Sapirstein, ENS Resources Congress returned to work in September, following a six week summer break. Their work to date has focused on the Super Committee finding solutions to debt reductions per their agreement just before adjourning, as well as the fiscal year 2012 budget that expires on October 1. To meet this deadline, most expect Congress to pass a continuing resolution to carry them through the next several weeks. Unlike past years, the rollercoaster-like nature of the spending debate is expected to be limited because members of the Committee on Appropriations in both the House and Senate want to complete action on a final spending bill by November. Congress will be most focused on the Super Committee's recommendations due by November 23. With this deadline, Congress cannot afford to be distracted debating the FY 2012 budget. While some of the twelve budget bills will be finalized, others, including the USEPA measure, Interior and Environment, appear headed toward incorporation into either a continuing resolution or part of an omnibus spending bill. The challenge in completing action on an Interior and Environment spending bill continues to be efforts to impose mandates on USEPA to roll back regulations and to prohibit the finalization of any guidance or rule related to the definition of which waters are subject to NPDES regulation. Democratic opposition in both the House and Senate has prevented consideration of such efforts; consequently, final action on an agency bill with regulatory roll-back mandates will be limited if at all. Nonetheless, the prospect for Page 2 of 5 final spending bills, whether under an omnibus or continuing resolution is likely by December, avoiding repetition of past years where final spending decisions spilled over into February and March. As noted at last month's Steering Committee, Representative Gary Miller introduced the Sunshine on Conflicts Act to address concerns about our inability to nominate qualified people to regional water quality control boards. We will be working with Representative Miller and his staff over the next several weeks to move this bill in the House. Last month, Senator Dianne Feinstein visited OCSD and OCWD to present an overview of her efforts to address the water supply and water quality needs of California. As part of this presentation, the Senator met privately with OCSD Board Chair Crandall where she was given an update on recent OCSD activities, including the dedication of the hydrogen energy and fueling station. The Senator was very supportive of our efforts and expressed her view that this project coupled with GWRS illustrated an exceptional commitment to addressing future needs of the region in an innovative manner. On a related matter, upon Congress' return to work in September, Senator Feinstein's Subcommittee on Energy and Water Appropriations approved an FY 2012 spending bill for the Department of Energy that includes a provision directing DOE to support hydrogen transportation fuels. This action suggests that the OCSD refueling project left an important and positive impression on the Senator. The new funding commitment could present OCSD with the opportunity to expand our use of hydrogen fuel cells for a source of clean energy. In addition to these actions, the Senator agreed to provide more than $25 million to maintain support for the Santa Ana Mainstem project, which includes relocation of the SARI line. The federal debt and deficit reduction initiative began in earnest during the past few weeks. Congress' Super Committee must develop and submit a $1 .5 trillion deficit reduction plan by November 23, allowing a month of debate before the vote. Under the rules developed for the Super Committee, the plan they submit can only be voted up or down with no changes or amendments. Because the committee has unprecedented authority to redesign federal infrastructure policy through the budget process, efforts are underway to advance new approaches to support water infrastructure. In discussions with House infrastructure committee staff, we have learned that a new infrastructure bank policy is under development that may impact the use of the SRF program and other existing water infrastructure policies and programs. Committee staff will be receiving comments on the proposals over the next few weeks. Page 3 of 5 State Legislative Report Legislative Advocates: Christopher Townsend, Heather Dion and Casey Elliott, Townsend Public Affairs After securing the first on time budget in 25 years, the State Legislature concluded the legislative session on September 9. On the final day, the Legislature focused on several last minute issues, including CEQA streamlining, the proposed LA football Stadium, the Amazon sales tax compromise, and budget clean-up bills. Governor Brown also attempted to increase state revenue by pushing a last-minute corporate tax package that cleared the Assembly with two Assembly Republican votes, but then failed in the Senate due to a lack of a two-thirds vote. Governor Brown will have until October 9 to sign or veto any bills passed by the Legislature before adjournment. The Legislature is scheduled to reconvene on January 4, 2012. Moving forward, the Governor and Legislature will remain focused on implementing and defending their budget proposal, which has been the source of legal challenges and referenda efforts. With State revenues more than $500 million below expectations in July, Governor Brown and the Legislature will likely be forced to re-examine the budget deal at the end of the year to determine if there are alternatives to the budget "triggers" of deeper cuts to education and social programs, which will automatically occur if State revenues continue to come in below projections. Despite opposition from the Department of Finance, the Democrats passed SB 6x requiring more notice from the Department of Finance whether "trigger" budget cuts are necessary and then requires Finance to consult with lawmakers on alternatives. The bill now heads to the Governor for his signature. Any future budget related measures will have to be introduced in the regular session, unless the Governor calls for another Extraordinary Session. Bills we are watching In the final days of the session, the Legislature passed SB 293 (Padilla) despite heavy lobbying by public sector groups. The bill set public contract retention rates at five percent for public works projects. Normally, agencies set a ten percent retention rate. OCSD sets our contract at ten percent but we reduce that amount to five percent as the contractor makes progress towards completion. The ten percent retention is used to hold contractors accountable and ensure timely completion. The bill actually arose from disputes between contractors and subcontractors. OCSD sent a letter to Governor requesting a veto of SB 293. As reported last month, OCSD worked closely with CASA and others on SB 482 (Kehoe) related to beach monitoring. Through our efforts, we removed some elements of the bill that caused concerns so we changed our position from oppose to neutral. SB 482 is now on the Governor's desk. The updated legislative matrix is attached to this report. Page 4 of 5 California Forward update California Forward released their July 2011 final framework, entitled "Smart Government: Making California Work Again." The framework makes a series of recommendations about special districts including revising revenue structures for local agencies, encouraging integration, collaboration and consolidation and promoting regional governance. Two major components include encouraging existing LAFCOs to refocus on consolidation as well as creating a new commission that would conduct a full review of the structure of local governments and report on ways to consolidate and pursue other legislative reforms. The California Special Districts Association (CSDA) has been heavily involved with CA Forward and that they will seek to incorporate parts of their framework in an initiative on the November 2012 ballot. This draft language could be released as early as this month and submitted to the Attorney General for title and summary this fall. PRIOR COMMITTEE/BOARD ACTIONS N/A ADDITIONAL INFORMATION Attachments: SB 293 veto request letter OCSD Bill Matrix CEQA N/A BUDGET / DELEGATION OF AUTHORITY COMPLIANCE N/A Page 5 of 5 I 5aN„Tq,°y ORANGE COUNTY SANITATION DISTRICT O 4 l} O U u' = 9 We protect public health and the environment by providing effective wastewater collection,treatment,and recycling. e 0 �Or �F THE EN��PO September 14, 2011 The Honorable Jerry Brown Governor, State of California California State Capitol Sacramento, CA 95814 Serving Re: SB 293 (Padilla) — Request for Veto Anaheim Brea Dear Governor Brown: Buena Park The Orange County Sanitation District respectfully requests that you veto Cypress Senate Bill 293 because it will limit a local agency's ability to set retention rates Fountain Valley to no more than 5% in public contracts. Fullerton Under current law, the percentage of any retention rate is specified within the Garden Grove contract between a public entity and contractor. A retention rate ensures that Huntington Beach work is done in compliance with the contract document and serves as a financial incentive for contractors to complete the project. With this bill, current law would Irvine be amended so that in all cases the retention rate is set from exceeding 5 Le Habra percent of the payment. The Orange County Sanitation District currently sets our La Palma retention rate at 10 percent but we reduce it to 5 percent with progress on the Los Alamitos project to ensure timely completion and that public dollars are being spent efficiently. Newport Beach Orange As a public utility, we spend millions each year in construction and need this Placentia flexibility to ensure project completion that is on-time and within budget. Santa Ana Ultimately, SB 293 will limit the ability of public agencies to protect themselves Seal Beach by capping the level of retention proceeds and significantly raising the financial Stanton risks on construction projects. Because of this, the Orange County Sanitation District is opposing this bill and respectfully requests your veto of this bill. Tustin Villa Park Thank you for your consideration on the important issue. Yorba Linda Sincerely, Costa Mesa Sanitary District Midway City za,4,7 Sanitary District Larry R. andall Irvine Ranch Water District Chairman of the Board County of Orange cc: James D. Ruth, General Manager Nr 10844 Ellis Avenue • Fountain Valley,CA 92708-7018 (714)962-2411 www,ocsd.com recycled paper OCSD Legislative Bill Tracking-2011 updated 9/2011 Bill Number Author Summary OCSD Position Notes Status AB 213 Silva Requires State Agencies to notice"interested Support Two-year bill parties"of proposed actions on rules and regulations. AB 262 Harkey Revises the boundaries of the Santa Ana Watch Two-year bill Regional Water Quality Control Board to include south Orange County. AB 457 Wagner Allows bidders of public contract work to Oppose Offering amendments for Two-year bill recover full attorney's costs for challenging reciprocity an award if their bid is determined to be invalid due to errors or omissions of the agency. AB 512 Gordon This bill would expand the definition of an Support To Governor eligible renewable generating facility to include facilities that have a generating capacity of no more than 5 megawatts to allow bill credits for generating renewable energy. AB 646 Atkins Changes exsiting law so that during labor Oppose To Governor negotations,agencies are no longer allowed to declare an impasse and impose a contract. Instead,the agency must appoint a mediator to recommend a settlement. AB 741 Huffman Allows the creation of voluntary assessment Support This bill is sponsored by IRWD Enacted districts to finance the cost of converting septic to sewer,connecting to a community system and replacing damaged sewer laterals. AB 1178 Ma This bill seeks to clarify existing law to Support Two-year bill prohibit discriminatory restrictions on the disposal of solid waste based on its place of origin. AB 1354 Huber Eliminates the 5%retention requirements for Oppose Two-year bill public work contracts and prohibits any contract retention amount. MD Legislative Bill Tracking-2011 updated 9/2011 Bill Number Author Summary OCSD Position Notes Status SB 482 Kehoe Shifts the responsbility of beach testing from Neutral OCSD has been working with To Governor th Department of Public Health to the State CASA on amendments.The Water Resources Control Board and allows amendments will clarify who pays the Board to levy fees on wastewater for the program and cap the total treatment agencies to pay for administration cost until 2016. of the program. SB 293 Padilla Changes the withholding provisions in public Oppose Veto letter sent To Governor works contracts,lowering the threshold from 10%to 5% SB 771 Kehoe This bill expands the energy sources that are Support To Governor eligible to receive funds through the Renewable Resources Trust Fund to include digester gas and waste gas to fuel cell power generation.This bill changes the current definition of eligible renewable energy to include digester or other gasses from wastewater treatment. SB 900 Steinberg Support Consistent with our efforts at the Two-year bill Provides that a person would not be federal level to change the 10 disqualified from being a member of a percent income rule. RWQCB if they receive,or a significant portiontheir income from a person subject to waste discharge requirements,or an applicant for waste discharge requirements, that govern discharges not within the jurisdiction of that RWQCB.