SANTA BARBARA COUNTY
SPECIAL DISTRICTS ASSOCIATION
MINUTES
JUNE 23, 2003
Pending Approval

Attendees:

Name Title Representing
Arnold, ChuckDirectorMontecito Sanitary District
Barnard, KevinManagerLos Alamos CSD
Beattie, DanDirectorSanta Ynez CSD
Bernstein, MitchGeneral ManagerS B Coastal Vector Control District
Blair, CharlesDirectorVandenberg Village CSD
Campbell, TimDirectorCachuma Resource Conser. District
Clark, CandyceSecretaryLos Alamos CSD
Conn, DianeDirectorIsla Vista Recreation & Park District
Fox, JohnDirectorGoleta Sanitary District
James, BerniceGuest SpeakerS B Co Treasurer/Tax Collector, Public Administrator/Guardian
Johnson, DerekGeneral ManagerIsla Vista Recreation & Park District
Meyer, LarryDirectorGoleta West Sanitary District
Nation, MarkGeneral ManagerGoleta West Sanitary District
Nix, BruceDirectorMission Hills CSD
Raggio, JimCEOLompoc Healthcare District
Schlottmann, CathyDirectorMission Hills CSD
Schwartz, S. David,DirectorEmbarcadero Muni. Improvement District
Smith, JerryGeneral ManagerMontecito Sanitary District
Wilson, LarryDirectorMontecito Water District

 

Call to Order:
  President John Fox called the meeting to order at 7:12 p.m. The attendees were introduced. All present participated in the Pledge of Allegiance.
Guest Speaker:
  Bernice James, Santa Barbara County Treasurer/Tax Collector, Public Administrator/ Guardian:   Bernice James summarized the functions of her offices. The Tax Collector receives $400 million annually in property tax payments at their Santa Maria and Santa Barbara offices. It also serves as the debt collector for other Santa Barbara County departments. The office of Public Administrator is a fiduciary role serving deceased County residents who have no one to settle their affairs. The Public Guardian office currently has 170 clients, serving individuals who are elderly or incompetent and need assistance. The office of Veterans Services attends to 35,000 County veterans. Ms. James serves on the County Retirement Board which oversees the investment of that system’s assets. She also serves as the chair of the County’s Debt Advisory Committee and is a member of the County Treasury Oversight Committee.

  The County Treasurer oversees investments of $700 million, with half being County funds, 35% belonging to school districts, and the balance being special district funds. There are many regulations regarding the investment of public funds. Investments in the stock market or for more than 5 years are prohibited. The investment guidelines balance safety (prevention of the erosion of capital, reduction of credit risk and interest rate risk), liquidity (that sufficient funds are available to meet cash flow demands), and yield (to maximize the rate of return while complying with State statutes and the County’s investment policies). It was noted that the rate of return of the CountyTreasurer usually exceeds that of LAIF. For the last quarter, LAIF earned about 2.0% and the County about 3.25%. The office is developing quarterly summary sheets for participants.

  Ms. James offered to review any debt financing paperwork for a district issuing debt or COPs. They can assist in evaluating alternatives to obtain the most economical financing package. The Treasurer’s office will be contacting special district with funds invested to identify any cash that can be invested for a longer term.

  The department’s website can be accessed via the "Departments" page of the County’s website, www.co.santa-barbara.ca.us.
Approval of Minutes
  Motion, second, to approve the Minutes of the May 19, 2003 meeting. Per discussion, there are four changes to the Minutes: inclusion of "Unanimous" as the last word under Minutes of April 28th meeting; inclusion of a period (.) at the end of Program update; under Introduction of Speaker, change the time from 8:20 pm to 8:30 pm in the first line; and inclusion of "Adjournment" as a separate item. The motion to approve the Minutes with the four changes passed with one dissenting vote.
Treasurer Report:
  Chuck Arnold reported the checking account has $2,879.06 and the savings account has $4,180.74. It was noted the Chapter lost $150 on tonight’s meeting due to low attendance.
Report on Executive Board Meeting: President Fox reported as follows:
  July meeting: It is recommended that next month’s meeting be held at the Union Hotel in Los Alamos. After discussion, it was moved, seconded, and unanimously approved to hold the July meeting at the Union Hotel is Los Alamos. The cost will be the same, $26 per person. Our special district LAFCO representatives will be the guest speakers talking about the MSR process.

  2003 Dues Waived: President Fox said the Executive Board recommends the membership dues this year be waived. It was noted the surplus is from the Special Report published last year. Motion, second, unanimous, to accept the Treasurer’s recommendation that there be no dues for 2003.
LAFCO Update:
  Tim Campbell reported LAFCO will be holding a retreat. He requested suggestions regarding LAFCO’s role and future as our LAFCO becomes more pro-active. Cathy Schlottmann noted the MSR Request for Information form has been recirculated requesting any comments districts have on the final draft. LAFCO commissioners especailly asked for any input regarding the relevancy of each question and if any of the questions will take an excessive amount of time to answer.
CSDA Update:
  Mitch Bernstein reported the CSDA in conjunction with LOCAL held a grassroots effort in San Luis Obispo to publicize the State’s taking of funds from special districts and safety districts to balance their budget.
Website Committee:
  Larry Meyer said it will be time to renew our domain name of sbsda.org during August.
New Business: None.
Old Business: None.
Adjournment:
  John Fox adjourned the meeting at 8:50 p.m. The next meeting will be held at 7:00 p.m. on Monday, July 28th at the Union Hotel in Los Alamos.

 

s/ Cathy Schlottmann

Cathy Schlottmann
 Secretary, SBCSDA