The rest of the story...
Here is The rest of the story… regarding various recent claims heard in the EID Board room, on EID’s website, in EID Press Releases, and in The Mountain Democrat. If you took this information at face value, you would have been heartened… but, in actuality, led astray... FAR astray!
“FLAT BUDGET”…
In December 2010, EID announced a
“flat”
budget totaling $42.7 million had been passed for 2011 operations.
Yet, 2010 actual spending was $39.1 million and included $0.4 million
fewer credits. So the “flat” 2011 budget reported on
EID’s website and in the Press was really a $4.1 million increased gross
spending budget… a 10.6% “de facto” spending increase…
hardly “flat”, and certainly “tone deaf” in the face of painful budget
slashing by our County, State, and Federal governments.
So what was included in this 10.6% INCREASED BUDGET deemed
“cut to the bone” by EID’s Board…and “essential to the quality and
safety of our Water supply”? Well, try the
following: increased travel, meetings, training, contract services,
consultants… not to mention 175 vehicles for 115 field employees,
$38,800 per employee benefits (including $18,500 medical and $12,800
pension contributions), and $0.5 million increased Engineering expense,
despite a 41% decrease in Capital Improvement Projects.
EID clearly continues to spend with their own comfort and job security
in mind… NOT the financial best interests of EID ratepayers.
“WAGE FREEZE”…
In April 2010, reacting to ratepayer angst
over huge rate increases, EID announced that it had frozen
wages for 2010-2011. The Press dutifully reported
this “wage freeze” and an EID Board member unequivocally confirmed that
wages were frozen. Yet, later it was uncovered that
wages were not frozen until seven months later, in November 2010, after
as much as $500,000 further 2010 wage increases had been granted.
Why can’t we accept EID pronouncements and Press Releases at face value?
Why are we too often misled by EID “half-truths”?
"TERTIARY TREATMENT"…
EID claims their “sky-high” Sewer rates
are due to tertiary treatment requirements.
As too often is the case, EID again has told ratepayers only half the
story…the half that fit their agenda and casts EID in an unduly
favorable and misleading light.
It absolutely is true that tertiary treatment costs Sewer ratepayers an
extra $200 annually vs. districts not subject to this higher Wastewater
treatment standard. But an even bigger factor in “sky-high” EID Sewer
bills is that the current EID Board approved Wastewater treatment
capacity expansion 50% greater than EID’s current 20,600
Sewer customers… enough for 10,400 additional customers!
So next time you open your Sewer bill, you can thank the
current EID Board for
costing you $241 annually in interest costs for prematurely building
this 50% extra capacity. Just what was the Board thinking?
Was making some new Developer “pals”, and some new Bond salesmen “pals”,
more important to the Board than prudent, measured capacity expansion
and fulfilling their financial fiduciary responsibilities to EID
ratepayers?
At EID, there always is more to the story. So,
check back in the following weeks for added installments to
The rest of the story…
New segments coming soon will include:
- Ten year flat Hydroelectric pricing to PG&E
- $1M Weber Dam Giveaway to Developers
- Domestic Irrigation Giveaway