Recall Volunteers Support Two Reform Candidates for TCWD Board
Anderson and Horst Committed to Restoring Affordable Water
Despite falling short on signatures to oust three TCWD board members who tripled water charges last year, the volunteers backing the recall campaign are taking their fight for affordable water to the ballot box in November. Through the Watchdog and other social media, they invited Trabuco residents interested in running for water board to meet with their interview committee, and ultimately decided to support two qualified candidates committed to representing rate payers and restoring affordable water.
“We have a great need for some fresh leadership whose focus is on minimizing the cost for each household through budget reductions and increasing efficiencies within the water department,” said candidate and Robinson Ranch resident John Horst, “especially for our elderly who are not able to absorb the five price increases while living on a fixed social security income.” Now retired, Horst was a minority owner in a distribution company where he grew the company’s evaluation fourteen times and secured 80% market share in just ten years. “My biggest accomplishments came from thinking outside the box to drastically improve efficiencies, eliminate wasteful spending, and train qualified team members to carry on the company for the years to come,” Horst wrote in his candidate statement.
A 20+ year canyon resident, candidate Mark Anderson seeks to rein in the skyrocketing water bills causing severe hardship to his neighbors, some of whom have been forced to move as a result. After entering the civil engineering profession in 1974, Anderson designed major infrastructure projects and served as chief operating officer and chief financial officer for organizations as large as 1,100 employees. He also served as board member and chairman of the Foothill Trabuco Specific Plan Review Board. “I am confident that my combined technical, management and leadership skills will serve you and all the residents within Trabuco Canyon Water District,” Anderson wrote in his candidate statement.
Two water board seats will be on the November ballot—that of incumbent Stephen Dopudja who is seeking re-election, and that of incumbent Don Chadd, who is not seeking re-election
Be prepared to do your civic duty in November to fill the two seats with new members pledged to represent the rate payers and restore affordable water. Be sure you are registered to vote (see below), look for your ballot in the mail after October 7, and educate yourself on the issues. Stay tuned to TCWDwatchdog.substack.com for the latest news on the campaign to elect new reform candidates and how you can help. Please share with your TCWD neighbors, family and friends.
Register Online to Vote in November
If you are not registered to vote at your current address, or you are not sure, you can easily take care of it online here (https://registertovote.ca.gov/).
OC Grand Jury Report: Water Districts Should Consolidate
TCWD Ordered to Respond
The Orange County Grand Jury, which has long pushed the county’s many water agencies to consolidate, issued a new report that found “an urgent need to unite the South Orange County water and wastewater agencies.” Citing the “redundancy, laden costs and complexity” of the county’s 29 retail water suppliers “with their own independent governing boards and associated bureaucracies,” the report concluded that “[c]onsolidating the large numbers of public agencies overseeing water and wastewater systems is a matter of significant concern.”
Consolidating the large numbers of public agencies overseeing water and wastewater systems is a matter of significant concern. (Orange County Grand Jury Report—Emerging Opportunities in South County Water/Wastewater Systems).
The report included as a case study the 2021 annexation of the city of San Juan Capistrano’s water and wastewater utilities by the Santa Margarita Water District (SMWD). When SMWD’s subsequent rate study drew complaints from businesses facing $9,700 to $14,000 annual capital charges based on the capacity of their fire service lines, the SMWD board (unlike the TCWD board) withdrew the capital charges and ordered a new rate study.
“Since the transfer, new SMWD customers have generally expressed satisfaction with their new provider’s service and water quality, as reflected in polls and customer surveys,” the Grand Jury report concluded.
The report also commended the Irvine Ranch Water District (IRWD), noting that it has successfully acquired five other agencies over the past 27 years. “IRWD has a proven track record since 1997 of having successfully unified five providers benefitting 57,000 residents with improved water reliability and standardized rates.” IRWD’s process begins with a consolidation request to IRWD from the prospective water agency, followed by a mutual agreement on terms, and then an application to the county’s Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCO) for its evaluation.
The Grand Jury ordered TCWD, along with several other south county water districts, to provide a written response to the report’s finding that “[t]here is no unified strategy for the future of water/wastewater provision in South Orange County.” TCWD’s general response, approved by the board at its August 15 meeting: it “partially disagrees” with the finding, asserting that the “unified strategy” already exists as “a common understanding of the roles and responsibilities of individual water/wastewater providers that also benefit from and rely on regional collaboration and knowledge transfer.”
Translation: “We’re as unified as we’re going to get, thanks anyway.” But aren’t TCWD’s sky-high, record-setting water bills saying that consolidation with neighboring water districts, where the rates are much lower, should at least be looked into?
Water Board Clamps Down on Public Speakers
Customers wishing to address the TCWD board at its monthly meetings will be limited to three minutes each, board president Stephen Dopudja announced at the August 15 meeting. Previously, persons who signed up to speak were allowed to donate their three minutes to another person representing them or making a longer presentation. “In consulting with legal counsel, historically we have allowed someone to give their time to another person,” said Dopudja. “Given we have an election and a filing period that is closed, we are going to stick to the three minutes per person,” in order to avoid giving anyone an “unfair advantage,” he said.
The rule change appeared to be aimed at Trabuco resident Sue Marucci, who has repeatedly challenged the board’s exorbitant “fixed meter charges” on behalf of her neighbors, who have often attended and donated their reserved speaking time to her.
As the large overhead three-minute clock counted down, one of Marucci’s neighbors, Pennie Foster, told board members that she was 81 years old, living on a pension, using only $17 to $30 worth of water each month, but paying a $271 [increased to $310 on July 1] fixed meter charge. “It’s not good for me,” she said, in this year’s most charitable understatement.
The three-minute limit, imposed even if only a single speaker steps forward, the absence of any amplified microphones in a meeting room whose poor acoustics make it difficult or impossible to hear the proceedings, all seem emblematic of the board’s disdain for public participation. The need for new blood on this water board has never been more apparent.
PR Consultant Charges Top $122k
TCWD Waste Watch
Two new $9k+ checks paid in July to PR consultant Rockspark Communications bring the firm’s total charges to almost $123k since being hired in December of 2022 to sell us on the big rate hikes.
This month’s cheerleading charges were apparently for scheduling a “Chat with TCWD,” “an evening of light refreshments and conversation with staff and Board members.” Do these board members really believe that more PR and light refreshments will convince customers to accept their heavy-duty water bills that increased another 15% on July 1?
One board member—to his credit—at least raised the question during the July 11 meeting of the finance audit committee:
“Ms. Warner [district principal accountant] reported that this line item [Total General and Administrative] was trending higher than budgeted due to the timing of insurance payments and increased public outreach costs. Director Acosta asked if staff believe the public outreach methods have been worth the associated costs; [District General Manager] Mr. Paludi commented that the public relations consultant has been an excellent extension of staff on all outreach efforts.” (Meeting minutes, italics added).
How have these “outreach efforts” benefited struggling rate payers like Pennie Foster [see “Board Clamps Down on Public Speakers,” above], who would surely prefer some water bill relief over a bus tour, “water awareness day,” or a chat and light refreshments with the TCWD? We need new board members who understand their primary role as representatives of the rate payers.
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Will the candidate work to merge TCWD with Irvine then, given that's been a successful path for many other districts? My concern with that plan would be that after being voted in, the candidates would want to retain the TCWD aspects so as to keep their own power. Can we instead vote on a proposition to merge with IRWD instead of trying to fix TCWD?
Great job in spreading the word about the new candidates Ray! HORST/ANDERSON are definitely getting my votes on election day!