[Damn – I was supposed to post this for La Femme a couple days ago.
Hope it’s not too late for you Costa Mesans to vote these guys out!
Wonder why all these folks want to “give back to the community” and serve on water and sewer districts? Consider Mesa Consolidated Water District.
Mesa Consolidated Board members get paid $207 per meeting plus full medical and life insurance—about $900 per month for those with dependent coverage. They can be paid for up to ten meetings per month, but no more than one meeting per day. The number of meetings attended—or should I say the number of meetings we pay them to attend—varies, but Dewane and Fisler just about always max out with ten, for total of $2,070 each month plus benefits, while Atkinson and Bockmiller often do not.
Doesn’t that mean that Shawn Dewane and Jim Fisler are working really, really hard for us? Well, here’s what Mesa Consolidated Water District records show.
Over the past six months, there have been eighteen official Mesa Consolidated board meetings averaging about 2 and a half hours each and ranging from 36 minutes to a five hour and 54 minute workshop. The average pay for these meetings comes out to just over $89 per hour.
Besides the board meetings, they have subcommittee meetings several times a month, lasting maybe an hour and a half each costing the ratepayers about $100 to $150 per hour. Dewane and Fisler also attend other meetings like the Water Advisory Committee of Orange County and Independent Special Districts of Orange County, a sort of League of Cities for special districts. Public records show these each last one and a half hours, for $138 per hour. They also attend numerous conferences, for which we pay all expenses plus their salaries.
They charge us to meet with other public officials like Huntington Beach Mayor and Orange County Water district candidate Kathy Green or current OCWD director and political consultant Steve Sheldon, sometimes individually and sometimes in pairs, often the Dewan/Fisler combo.
You’d think after all that, they’d be sick of each other. But no; they charge us to meet with each other, too.
They charge us to meet with constituents, whether at a function like a Chamber of Commerce luncheon or one to one. My neighbor was surprised when she learned that Fisler had charged the ratepayers $207 to sit down with her over coffee at Starbucks to talk about water for less than an hour.
They charge us to meet with staff. They charge us to honor staff at employee recognition events, and charge us to say good bye to staff at retirement parties.
If that’s not enough, Fisler even charges to attend social events, like the recent opening of the Seasons 52 Restaurant, so Fisler not only got free food but that $207 stipend.
They even seem to consider partisan political events part of their duties. Fisler and Dewane submitted chits for attendance at “OC Central Committee Meeting”. They didn’t specify which one, but since Fisler also listed attendance at Costa Mesa Republican Assembly, we can guess. Alas for poor Jim and Shawn, they were not paid for these because, as noted in Mesa Consolidated records, the meeting “exceeds ordinance … limits, or meeting is not eligible for pay”. But you can’t blame a guy for trying.
What do they do elsewhere? Well, in Newport Beach and Huntington Beach water service is part of the City function and dealing with related issues is just a normal part of a Council Member’s job. Maybe it’s time for a change in Costa Mesa.
if they go to fourteen or fifteen meetings per month they, mathematically speaking, would max out. Sounds like extra work for free. If they abuse the meeting stipend and go to functions that do not provide legislative outreach or are water related that is definitely bad. I would think the limit of ten meetings would take care of that risk though since there are probably at least ten qualified meetings each month. So unless they skip them and somehow get paid for other events not about water where is the problem? I am not certain but I would think there are policies as to what qualifies which would further lessen the chance of abuse. You went after the planning commission and now the water and sanitation all to reveal a Bells are ringing scandal. Looks like two grand a month is all you can uncover max. What is next, OCTA? Vector control? Does your council “cash out” unused medical allowance? that cashing out would be a problem with me since it is totally unearned. Are these water guys double cashing out? give me some real meat, not just the widely known ten meetings. Come over to HB and check out the cops pay and benefits. Go where you can save us some real money
Here’s a thought. Why don’t we just give them say $400.00 a month. They can get medical insurance from their full-time employer. If they don’t have a full-time employer, they can go down to the EDD with all the other unemployed and find one. We have enabled our part-time lawmakers, including city council members and board members to want more, more, more. Lets get rid of the whole bunch and start over with good, honest, ethical people. People who ask not what their country can do for them, but what they can do for their country.
I agree with just giving them a set fee then the …
NOTE FROM VERN, the editor:
From now on, your comments will get deleted as soon as you start insulting Sandy for her appearance. We don’t care if you think she’s hot or not. We know you’re closeted gay anyway. All that “yuck” stuff about Katrina too. Hey look, you said lots of interesting stuff in that long comment, but it’s all gone because you were an asshole. Wanna try again?
Not sure where your “supposed” facts come from, but I happen to have a full time job where I have quite a few associates that are directors for various water boards and city positions. All of them spend an inordinate amount of time on phone calls and emails every day, including weekends and evenings, going back and forth to pursue the goals at hand. For the members of these organizations who take their position seriously, and really care about the city, are definitely not counting the amount of time spent for this, because if they did, no one would do it. There is way too much required to do these jobs correctly. There are a few members on the same boards that not only do not contribute, but go out of their way to stop any and all progress to make things better. Let’s retire those members!!!!! It is a total waste of taxpayer money and time to have these members sabotaging efforts to move forward.
Elected Board Members put in long hours and they should get paid and some benefits just like corporate board members. However, the rub comes when they try to hold two elected seats simultaneously or pow-wow for private meetings to build up their monthly pay or take unneeded business trips or use their position for personal gain.
Ok, the election is over. Now, it’s Time to Do the Right Thing. Our elected officials need to step-up and be role models establishing an excellence of integrity and ethics for citizens and our children.
Gary Monahan in Costa Mesa holds two elected seats simultaneously. Maybe its permitted under the current loopholes but it does not make it the Right Things to Do. There will always be Conflict of Interest.
Now, Shawn DeWane with the Mesa Water District is faced with the same ethical dilemma of serving two elected seats simultaneously. Mesa Water or Orange County Water? Who will he represent? It is fair to the voters who elected them? It’s time to end the loopholes, conflict of interests and double dipping of pay, special perks and fringe benefits that elected officials receive from us, the taxpayers and ratepayers.
Monahan and DeWane, please don’t waste our taxpayer and ratepayer money. Show us that you can Do the Right Thing. Only hold one elected office and give others the opportunity to serve the public. What will Foley do? She’ s in the same dilemma.
OC Voters Advocate