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HomeMy WebLinkAbout01/18/2011, C7 - LETTER OF SUPPORT TO APPOINT JOHN ASHBAUGH TO THE REGIONAL WATER QUALITY CONTROL BOARD counat j acenda Pepont CITY OF SAN LU I S O B I S P O FROM: Michael Codron, Assistant City Manager Prepared By: April Richardson, Executive Administration Assistant SUBJECT: LETTER OF SUPPORT TO APPOINT JOHN ASHBAUGH TO THE REGIONAL WATER QUALITY CONTROL BOARD RECOMMENDATION Authorize Mayor Jan Marx to sign a letter of support for John Ashbaugh's appointment to the Regional Water Quality Control Board. DISCUSSION Background California's nine Regional Water Quality Control Boards were created by the Legislature in 1949 to regulate discharges from municipal and industrial wastewater treatment plants in response to the poor regulatory performance of the State Health Department. The Boards are intended to create regional bodies made up of people knowledgeable about local conditions to make more targeted and informed decisions than a single body located in Sacramento. The City of San Luis Obispo is situated in the Central Coast Region which roughly includes the coastal areas from Watsonville in the north to Santa Barbara in the south (Region 3). Each Regional Board is made up of nine members appointed by the Governor for a four-year term. As much as possible, it is desirable for appointed members to be from all parts of the represented region. The two major areas of Regional Board responsibility are defined as: 1. Regulation of all waste discharges that could affect the waters of the state, including those from municipalities, industries, private sources, solid waste disposal sites, and nonpoint sources. 2. Water quality planning functions, involving the adoption of a Water Quality Control Plan for each region, and keeping them current through the adoption of amendments (Attachment 1). Current Board The nine board members areas of expertise are outlined below: • One member is associated with water supply, conservation, and production • One member is associated with water quality • One member is associated with industrial water use (Vacant) • One member is associated with municipal government and is required to be a city council member or mayor(Vacant) C7-1 Ashbaugh Appointment to Regional Water Quality Control Board Page 2 • One member is associated with county government and is required to be a county supervisor(Vacant) • One member is from a responsible nongovernmental organization associated with recreation, fish, or wildlife(Vacant) • Three members are not specifically associated with any of the foregoing categories. Of these, two shall have special competence in areas related to water quality issues. Appointment and Responsibilities of Board Members All members appointed to a regional board are subject to Senate confirmation, though they are not required to appear before any committee for purposes of confirmation unless requested to do so. To avoid conflicts of interest, board members cannot have received a significant portion of their income directly or indirectly from any person subject to waste discharge requirements or applicants for waste discharge requirements during the past two years (the City of San Luis Obispo is subject to these waste discharge requirements). The Central Coast Regional Board meets eight to ten times per year in San Luis Obispo, Watsonville, or Santa Barbara. Members receive one hundred dollars ($100) for each day during which they are engaged in the performance of official duties. Board members are also reimbursed for travel expenses. Letter of Support Attachment 2 is a letter of support for Council Member Ashbaugh's appointment. Mayor Marx will sign the letter on behalf of Council. FISCAL IMPACT There is no fiscal impact associated with this action as Council Member Ashbaugh is paid for his board member duties and reimbursed for travel expenses. Minimal staff support will be provided through Administration. ALTERNATIVES 1. Do not approve a letter of support for John Ashbaugh's appointment to the Regional Water Quality Control Board. 2. Select another local elected official from an eligible jurisdiction. To date, staff is not aware of any other requests for support. ATTACHMENTS 1. Regional Board Functions & Responsibilities 2.. Letter of support for John Ashbaugh's appointment to the Regional Water Quality Control Board ✓ C7-2 ATTACHMENT I CALIFORNIA REGIONAL WATER QUALITY CONTROL BOARD CENTRAL COAST REGION 895 Aeroviste Place-Suite 101 San Luis Obispo, CA 93401-7906 REGIONAL BOARD FUNCTIONS AND RESPONSIBILITIES BRIEF HISTORY Califomia's nine. Regional Water Quality Control Boards were created by the Legislature in 1949 to regulate discharges from municipal and industrial wastewater treatment plants in response to the poor regulatory performance of the State Health Department. The Boards were created with the idea that a regional body made up of people knowledgeable about local conditions could make better decisions than a single body located in Sacramento. Initially, the Boards had limited regulatory and enforcement powers, but that changed dramatically in 1969 with the passage of the Porter-Cologne Water Quality Control Act. For the first time, Regional Boards could Impose real sanctions on dischargers that refused to comply with Board orders. The Central Coast Regional Board was the first one in the state to use the new authority when it Imposed sewer connection bans on the Monterey Peninsula Cities in 1970 because of their failure to cleanup their municipal sewer discharges. BOARD COMPOSITION AND RESPONSIBRJTIES Chapters 4 and 5 of the California Water Code provide the statutory framework for the Regional Boards and the authority they need to cavy out the functions assigned to them. Each Regional Board is made up of nine members, who are appointed to staggered four-year terms by the Governor. Each member is appointed to represent a particular segment of the water using public. Because the Board members are not elected, they are somewhat insulated from the political arena as they deliberate and make decisions. They are also expected to have some knowledge of water quality matters within their particular region. Essentially,the Boards are charged with protecting all waters of the state, be they ground water, surface water, or marine waters. Federal statutes (primarily the Federal. Clean Water Act) and regulations have added to the Regional Board's authorities, but they have also greatly complicated procedures and reporting requirements for both the Boards and the regulated community. ATTACHMENT 9 -Page 2- The two major areas of Regional Board responsibility can be defined as: (1) Regulation of all waste discharges that could affect the waters of the state, including those from municipalities, industries, private sources, solid waste disposal sites, individual disposal systems, agricultural operations, and nonpoint sources. The primary tools used are permit adoption, surveillance and monitoring reports and inspections, and enforcement orders. (2) Water quality planning functions, Involving the adoption of a Water Quality Control Plan for each region, and keeping them current through the adoption of amendments as necessary. Each Regional Board's"Basin Plan"defines beneficial uses of water,establishes water quality objectives or standards,and includes a plan of Implementation. Since the early 1970'x, both the Federal Government and the California Legislature have seen fit to expand the role of the Regional Boards Into many new areas,such as the partial regulation of toxic and hazardous waste disposal,oversight of leaking underground tank and other spill cleanups, and, the Implementation and enforcement of statewide water quality control plans and policies adopted by the State Board. New enforcement powers Including the authority to issue administrative civil liabilities directly have also been given to the Boards. ADMINISTRATIVE FRAMEWORK The Regional Boards are semi-autonomous bodies that,for administrative purposes are part of the State Water Resources Control Board, and now,the new California Environmental Protection Agency. While the"State Boards Is an appellate body for Regional Board,decisions and handles administrative functions like budgeting and accounting for the Regions, It has only limited direct line authority over the Regional Boards. In-house legal services are provided to the Regions by the State Board's legal staff. Representation for litigation is provided by the Attorney General for civil matters or a District Attorney for criminal cases. -4--- ATTACHMENT 1 -Page 3- DELEGATION OF POWERS The Water Code allows each Regional Board the flexibility to delegate each of its statutory powers except°...(1)the promulgation of any regulation,(Z) the issuance, modification, or revocation of any water quality control plan, water quality ob/ectives,or waste discharge requirement;(3)the issuance or modification of any cease or desist order, (4)the holding of any hearing on water quality control plans; and, (5) the application to the Attorney General!or Judicial enforcement..° The Central Coast Regional Board has delegated everything else to the Executive Officer and Its staff who take care of the day to day business. REGIONAL BOARD MEETINGS The Central Coast Regional Board usually meets eight to ten times per year and varies Its meeting locations among northern, central, and southern areas of the region. At these meetings,the Board may hold public hearings on planning Items, consider the adoption of waste discharge requirements or enforcement orders, adopt resolutions, and receive information about topics of Interest. The Board's staff prepares an agenda package for each meeting which contains the minutes of the previous meeting, background information for each agenda Item,staff reports as needed, drafts of the orders or resolutions to be considered, and other documents to provide information to the Board. The'agenda package is usually mailed about 12 days prior to the Board meeting. Normally, correspondence regarding agenda items that is received in the Board's office is summarized in the staff report and not Included in the agenda package. It Is Included If the Issue Is particularly controversial, or the correspondence is difficult to summarize. Board members are encouraged to call staff prior to the Board meeting If they have questions about any agenda Item after having read it. It Is frequently easier to answer a question from the Board's office where all information is kept, rather than at the Board meeting where only minimal backup information is available. All Regional Board meetings are open to the public except for closed sessions to discuss actual or threatened litigation. Board members should be careful to avoid discussions with outside parties about matters which are scheduled for Board action. Such ex parte contacts can require a Board member to be disqualified from discussing or voting on the matter when It comes before the Board. r,4 1 7 ATTACHMENT 1 -Page 4 CONFUCT OF INTEREST Regional Board members are expected to step down and not participate in the discussion or voting whenever the Board is considering any matter that could Involve a conflict of Interest for the member. (For example, a Board member who is also a member of a city council,would be expected to step down while the Board considered a new discharge permit for the city.) Each Board member must complete a financial disclosure statement each year they serve on the Regional Board, and file a leaving office statement when he or she leaves the Board. And,finally,a person may not serve on a Regional Board if more than ten percent of his or her income is derived from a business or entity which holds a National Pollutant.Discharge Elimination System (NPDES)permit issued by the Board. The State Board's Chief Counsel will brief you further on ex parte contact rules and conflict of Interest regulations. G��Y off. _ ARACHMENT2 4¢4 o C4 Of SAn WIS OBISPO v+ p �lel OFFICE OF THE CITY COUNCIL 4/ s O� 990 Palm Street ■ San Luis Obispo, CA 93401-3249 ■ 805/781-7119 January 19, 2011 Governor Jerry Brown c/o State Capital 1173 Sacramento, CA 95814 Re: Appointment of San Luis Obispo Vice Mayor John Ashbaugh to the Central Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board Dear Governor Brown, On behalf of the City Council of the City of San Luis Obispo, I would like to recommend Vice Mayor John Ashbaugh for appointment to the Central Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board for the municipal government position. John was elected to the San Luis Obispo City Council in 2008 and was recently appointed to serve as Vice Mayor for 2011. Prior to this, John served for four years on the San Luis Obispo Planning Commission, a Council Advisory Body. John was the founding director of the San Luis Obispo Land Conservancy and has served on the San Luis Obispo County Water Resources Advisory Committee. John has lived in San Luis Obispo since 1977. He has degrees in city planning, landscape architecture, and education. John owned an environmental consulting firm in San Luis Obispo for fourteen years that specialized in public agencies. Currently, besides serving as a Council Member, John teaches at schools and colleges throughout the Central Coast region. John Ashbaugh would be an asset and a valuable addition to the Central Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board. Sincerely, Jan Marx Mayor C7-7