President Jim Raggio called the meeting to order at 7:02 p.m. All present recited the Pledge of Allegiance to the flag of the United States. Attendees introduced themselves.

Approval of Minutes: Motion, second, unanimous, to approve the Minutes of October 29, 2007 as presented.

County Treasury Oversight Committee: Craig Geyer reported a recent report on the County Treasury is available. He noted a local bank is trying to gain deposits of public funds.

2008 Chapter Dues: President Raggio said our annual dues are approximately $3,200. We currently have about $6,000 in the bank and annual expenses have been averaging $3,500. The Executive Committee recommends that dues be assessed at 50% of the normal rate, with the new board reviewing our funds and possible projects.

Motion, second, unanimous, to rescind our prior motion to suspend dues, and that we charge 2008 dues at a rate of 50%. The Executive Committee will report back on this.

LAFCo Update: John Fox noted the formation of the Santa Rita Hills CSD is coming before LAFCo.

Legislative Update: George Emerson noted the CSDA website is upgraded. It will be presented at a future meeting.

2008 Chapter Elections: The proposed slate of officers for 2008 are: Charlie Blair for President; Larry Meyer for Vice-President, Cathy Schlottmann for Secretary, Tom Gibbons for Treasurer, Jim Raggio for Immediate Past President, Craig Murray for 1^st District, Jack Cunningham for 2^nd District, John Fox for 3^rd District, Susan Warnstrom for 4^th District, Darryl Sousa for 5^th District, and George Emerson, Bob Wyckoff, Tony Fox, and Larry Wilson for at-Large representatives, and Thomas Stone for legal counsel.

Motion, second, unanimous, to approve the 2008 slate of officers.

 

Guest Speaker: State Assemblyman Sam Blakeslee: Tony Fox introduced Assemblyman Blakeslee. He was elected on 2004 representing northern Santa Barbara County and part of San Luis Obispo County. His background is in finance. He noted that much is going on in Sacramento with the current special session on health care and water. He has been involved with 30 bills the governor has signed, with the Los Osos CSD bill being the most challenging.

The State currently has a $14 billion deficit with partisan politics complicating the resolution process. The governor has proposed we borrow the State’s way into rebuilding. The governor promotes recovery, reform, and rebuilding. It was noted new taxes are being considered to reform healthcare in the State. 2008 will be the year of education, which will be challenging with the deficit and the bursting of the housing bubble. The problems and challenges of Sacramento are felt throughout local government in this state. Debt repayment is currently 8% of the State’s general fund. Some are urging the governor declare a fiscal crisis to curtail spending and perhaps implement the emergency provisions of Proposition 1A

Adjournment: President Raggio adjourned the meeting at 8:01 p.m. The next monthly Chapter meeting will be held Monday, January 28^th at The Meadows Restaurant, Solvang, California.

s/ Ca thy Sch lottmann

Cathy Schlottmann

Secretary, SBCSDA