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MMWD
Protesting the MMWD rate increases
I am protesting the MMWD rate increases because of what I see as significant mismanagement. If you want to protest, too, you must do so in writing, but you do not have to give reasons. A simple form of protest that you can use is attached, Just sign it, add your name and fill out one of three identifiers: your service address, your parcel number, or your MMWD customer number.
Here are some of my reasons for protesting the upcoming MMWD rate increases.
The proposed increases in water rates by MMWD are not necessary except for mismanagement. The information provided to ratepayers is misleading in that it attempts to conceal the extent of mismanagement.
While MMWD argues that it has fixed costs that must be passed on to ratepayers, calling these costs fixed does not mean that they are immune from scrutiny or change. MMWD has mushrooming infrastructure costs that increase with no apparent effort at containment. Some examples appear below.
MMWD has increased its use of consultants for work that used to be done by employees. Yet no staff reduction has accompanied the removal of that work from the staff. An example is the hiring this year of “an independent rate consultant.” Moreover, this independent rate consultant appears to have assumed that the infrastructure costs provided by MMWD are not subject to question or evaluation.
Nothing could be further from the truth.
We assume that among the fees for consultants are those listed under the General Manager Division as professional fees. These fees were $215,000 in 2013, $497,436 in 2014, budgeted $584,508 in 2015, proposed $387,750 in 2016, and proposed $242,750 in 2017. This overuse of consultants apparently has no end in sight.
Another example is the use of outside counsel for legal opinions and legal services, even though MMWD has a well-paid in-house lawyer. It appears that this practice may not be reserved for occasional use. Financial statements show professional fees in the Legal Division as $156,966 in 2014, budgeted $469,000 in 2015, proposed $419,000 in 2016, and proposed $469,000 in 2017.
The Water Conservation Department spent $48,111 on professional fees in 2013, $340,182 in 2014, budgeted $377,211 in 2015, and proposed $175,000 in 2016.
Information Technology spent $128,845 on professional fees in 2013, $93,968 in 2014, budgeted $98,947 in 2015, and proposed $162,750 in each of 2016 and 2017. What are the employees doing?
Even the Public Information Department spends funds on professional fees. $51,824 in 2012, $36,926 in 2013, $58,150 in 2014, budgeted $107,350 in 2015, and $48,000 proposed in both 2016 and 2017.
The professional fees budget for 2015 alone is more than $2.5 million,
http://www.marinwater.org/documentcenter/view/3147.
Another example of mismanagement is the proliferation of “management” employees. The Water Conservation group has two supervisors and a manager to oversee a staff of six. Perhaps this is just the tip of the iceberg. Has management been asked to determine how many management positions can be cut? Have they been asked to review the possibility of staff reductions? It would appear not.
While we have no objection to paying lower level employees a living wage, we are appalled at the mushrooming salaries and benefits of senior management.
http://transparentcalifornia.com/salaries/marin-municipal-water/
Senior management employees are no longer paying the employee portion of their pension. Now that the company pays the employee portion, it does not show up as salary. This device can only be a means of concealing the real cost of these salaries and benefits, as well as unreasonably inflating the costs of pensions.
Although the financial statements also include pension liability figures, we all know that public pensions are underfunded, and government accounting rules do not require accurate calculations of the unfunded liabilities.The current financial statements of MMWD do not address this issue at all. Nor is there any discussion of the effect of upcoming changes in the government accounting rules that would affect such disclosures. What is the plan to pay down the unfunded pension liability?
MMWD Board Members serve part-time and still have the ability to hold full-time positions. Yet they receive medical benefits!
Historically, each time a drought has reduced MMWD’s income and resulted in an increase in rates, the rates have never gone back down when the drought has ended. We see no indication that MMWD management has any plans to reduce rates if and when water use income recovers.
Laura Effel
Larkspur
Please join me!