Minutes of the Board of Trustees – Wednesday, September 9, 2009.

1. Roll Call:

Present:      President, Evan Long; Secretary, Belen Gomez; Bette George; Harold Dozier and Bruce Myers.

Staff:                      Manager, Michael Alburn.

2. Approval of August Minutes:

It was moved by Bruce Myers, seconded by Harold Dozier, and unanimously carried that the Minutes of the August meeting be approved as mailed.

3. Abatement Hearing Cornelius Anker:

The Board conducted an Abatement Hearing in consideration of the facts outlined in Abatement Notice, August 31, 2009 (See: Exhibit I).  No one representing Cornelius Anker attended.  It was moved by Bruce Myers, seconded by Belen Gomez, and unanimously carried that the Board of Directors take the following action:

• Water will not be applied by the owner until the field is prepared to receive such so that it will not stand for more than three days continuously;

• Irrigation of the property that results in mosquito control efforts on the part of the District will be paid for by the owner;

• Should treatment to control mosquitoes be required by the District in the future as a result of irrigation practices of the owner or the land being unprepared for such irrigation, the Board will hold a hearing to determine the civil fine to be levied (by law, up $1,000 per day is allowed).

4. Approval of August Bills:

Following discussion, it was moved by Belen Gomez, seconded by Harold Dozier, and unanimously carried that the August Bills be approved as submitted.  See:  Board Order to disburse funds No. 4, Exhibit II.

5. Approval of September Payroll:

Following discussion, it was moved by Bruce Myers, seconded by Bette George, and unanimously carried that the September Payroll be approved as submitted.  See:  Board Order to disburse funds No. 5, Exhibit III.

6. Public Forum:

None.

7. Operational Report:

The District conducted extensive surveillance efforts in all communities.  Adult mosquito treatments were required as a result in Dinuba, Ivanhoe, Farmersville, Traver and Visalia.

Employees have reverted to the 7:30 – 4:00 work schedule effective September 8.

Irrigation has ended for Alta and St. Johns, Friant-Kern, Ivanhoe and Exeter still delivering.

Summer help continues to decline with five completing their employment this past month.

8. West Nile Virus Update:

The Manager reported on the status of West Nile virus in the local, regional, and statewide areas.

40 Counties with WNV activity

26 Human Cases, median age 52, 46% neuroinvasive, 69% male. No fatalities. 127 last yr.

5 Equine cases, 2 euthanized.

385 birds, last year 1,456.  Tulare County 22

845 positive mosquito samples last year 1,405.  Tulare County - 122, DVCD – 117.

171 chickens, last year 134, Tulare county 15

54,372 mosquitoes collected, 835 samples submitted, 117 positive, 14 pending.

9. Hayashida Architects:

The Manager presented a contract from Leland Saylor along with an estimate for work by Hayashida that will allow for the producing of a Concept Estimate for the laboratory.

Hayashida has forwarded the fee from the Cost Estimator, for providing a single construction cost estimate for the new Lab Building, at the Delta VCD.  Lloyd Folgolhut, Vice President,  wanted to clarify with Saylor Consulting Group that their data would be specific to the San Joaquin Valley areas, and in particular Visalia.

They have assured him that they will include the following written statement of service "Due to the extreme volatility of bids in the general downward direction, Saylor’s pricing in the estimate will reflect the general downward pricing trend that is apparent across the state and is more so affected in areas outside the major metropolitan areas.  Saylor’s pricing for the Vector Control district project will be customized for the San Joaquin Valley area to closely match the construction trends and pricing of the local area.  One can expect a 20-30% reduction in bids normally seen in the pre-2007 construction boom years.  This is somewhat dependant on the number of bids received, so it is important for the construction manager and estimator to voice their input about local market prices, labor & bidding trends before the bidding process begins."

Their cost to Delta will be $2,800.00.  Hayashida will add their expenses for coordination of finishes and materials, as we are accelerating their cost estimate process by supplying them with finish material specifications.  This typically requires expending approximately 4 - 5 hours of time to assist with this accelerated cost estimate.

The final cost to the District for the cost estimate will be $3,300.00

It was moved by Harold Dozier, seconded by Bette George and unanimously carried to approve the expenditure provided any supplemental consulting costs will be provided in writing for separate Board approval.

10. SCI:

The Manager presented the Draft Survey to be mailed to constituents (See: Exhibit IV).  Two options are being formulated, a 5-year and 10-year payback.  The Draft is being proofed for Spanish grammar and punctuation, following that it will be ready for mailing.  Two weeks to print from the approved draft followed by 6 weeks in the public’s hands with a preliminary report possible as early as 4 weeks.

11. CSDA Annual Conference, Indian Wells, September 21-24:

The Manager requested travel approval for the Administrative Assistant and himself in order to attend this conference.  It was moved by Harold Dozier, seconded by Bruce Myers and unanimously carried to approve the travel as requested.

12. CalPERS Employer Rates:

Preliminary investment returns for last fiscal year were negative 23.4%.  Final return will not be available until October.

Enormous strains call for a deviation from the normal smoothing approach.

· Three year phase in of the 08-09 investment loss

1. increase the corridor limits for the actuarial value of assets from 80%-120% of market value to 60% - 140% of market value impacting the 11-12 contribution rate.

2. reduce the corridor limits for the actuarial value of assets to 70% - 130% impacting 12-13 contribution rate.

3. return to the 80% - 120% of market value corridor limits for the actuarial value which impact the 13-14 and years beyond contribution rates.

· Isolate the asset loss outside the 80% -120% corridor and pay for it with a fixed and certain amortization schedule.  In this way, future investment returns will not be relied upon to pay for 08-09 investment losses.

For Delta this means we will see an additional 1.5% (11-12), 2% (12-13), 2.1% (13-14) and .2% (14-15) of payroll increase in our current employer contribution rate.  The rate for 10-11 is 12.8%.  If it were static, we would add approximately 1.5% to the rate for our employer contribution in 11-12.  One concern is CalPERS expectation to earn 7.75% after 08-09.  The Manager will report changes from this schedule as warranted.

13. Reduction of Ad Valorem Property Tax Revenue Apportionment:

The District will see a reduction of its Ad Valorem property tax revenue apportionment for 09-10 of $147,351.  This is not a final number, minor calculations still are pending.  We budgeted $135,432.  The State will pay the money back within 3 years with interest.

14. Adjournment:

The meeting adjourned at 8:10 p.m.

Board Minutes approved on October 14, 2009.

_____________________________________

Michael W. Alburn, Recording Secretary