Call to Order – Chairman White called the meeting to order at 5:30 p.m. Board members present were J. B. White, Harvey Norris, Eddie Roberts, Jr., Burt Jones & Eddie Ford. Jackson Mayor Kay Pippin was also in attendance. Staff members present were General Manager Marcie Seleb and Joyce Hosey, Clerk to the Board.
Approval of Minutes from August 12, 2014 Meeting – Mr. Roberts made a motion to dispense with the reading of the minutes from the August 12, 2014 meeting. This was seconded by Mr. Norris and approved unanimously.
Modify Georgia Environmental Finance Authority (GEFA) Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (DWSRF) 11-025 Loan Amount – Ms. Seleb advised the Board that she has received documents from GEFA to modify loan DWSRF 11-025 for the West Butts elevated tank from $1,722,000 to $1,400,000. The loan had been reduced to reflect a lower than anticipated construction costs and to maximize previously approved “loan forgiveness” of $420,000. All loan funds have to be expended to receive the full loan forgiveness amount. The net maximum final loan will be $980,000 paid back over twenty years at a rate of 1.4%.
Mr. Jones made a motion to accept and adopt a resolution to decrease the loan amount for the West Butts tank from $1,722,000 to $1,400,000. This was seconded by Mr. Ford and approved unanimously.
Consider Financial Policy with Respect to Tax-Exempt Debt – Board members reviewed a post-issuance policy required by the Series 2014 Revenue Bond issuance. The policy insures that any tax-exempt debt issued by the Authority will be managed in compliance with state and federal law.
A motion was made by Mr. Norris to approve the post-issuance compliance policy for tax-exempt obligations. This was seconded by Mr. Jones and approved unanimously.
A copy of the policy is attached and made a part of these minutes.
Budget Revision – Ms. Seleb reported that issuance of the Series 2014 Revenue Bonds will also require a revision to the Fiscal Year 2015 budget to account for posting of bond issuance costs and accrued interest. The total interest expense for Water Operations will increase from $48,700 to $102,500. The total interest expense for Sewer Operations will increase from $58,900 to $212,700. These expenses were paid for by bond proceeds and won’t affect the Authority’s actual operational finances.
A motion was made by Mr. Norris to accept the budget revision to interest expense. This was seconded by Mr. Roberts and approved unanimously. A copy of a table detailing the interest line items by funds is attached and made a part of these minutes.
Change Name for Water Service Disconnect Fee – Ms. Seleb advised the Board that the name assigned to the fee charged for water service disconnections must be changed from “reconnect fee” to “service disconnection fee” to be in compliance with Georgia court rulings.
A motion made by Mr. Roberts to change the fee name from water “reconnect fee” to “service disconnection fee.” This was seconded by Mr. Norris and approved unanimously.
Consider Modification to Connection Fees – Ms. Seleb presented her recommendations for modifications to capital recovery fees, tap fees, and meter fees. She explained that the new capital recovery fee calculation was determined using seventy-five percent of each new service’s share of existing system value. New customers will “buy into” the system based upon the gallons per day are reserved for use by meter size.
The new calculation method resulted in a reduction of Capital Recovery Fees for water by 45% and sewer by 63%. Water tap fees and meter fees were also recalculated to equal the actual cost of installations, resulting in an increase in those fees of 20-25% depending on tap size. For a standard 3/4″ connection, total fees for water will reduce from $1,325 to $1,100 and total fees for sewer will reduce from $3,275 to $1,325.
A motion was made by Mr. Ford approve a modified slate of fees for water and sewer connections. This was seconded by Mr. Roberts and approved unanimously. Mr. White abstained from the vote, as he is a property owner and real estate developer.
Details of the new fee structure, including calculations, rates for each size connection, and comparisons to neighboring systems are attached and made a part of these minutes.
Consider Proposal from Carl Vinson Institute for Pay Plan and Job Descriptions – Board members reviewed a proposal from the Carl Vinson Institute of Government for a pay and classification plan. The institute’s staff would perform job analysis surveys and evaluations for each position. They would also conduct marketplace compensation surveys for pay plan development and training on implementation of this new plan.
A motion was made by Mr. Roberts to accept the proposal from Carl Vincent Institute of $6,750 to perform a job analysis survey and job classification plan. This was seconded by Mr. Norris and approved unanimously.
Request for Water Connection on Short Road – Eric Vichter – Ms. Seleb advised the Board that she has received a request from Eric Vichter for a water connection on Short Road. It is a 11.9 acre lot that is 95% in Lamar County and Lamar County would be receiving the taxes for this property.
A motion made by Mr. Ford to deny Mr. Vichter’s request for a water connection on Short Road, as 95% of his property is in Lamar County. This was seconded by Mr. Roberts and approved unanimously.
Donation Request for Ernest Biles Memorial Golf Tournament – The Authority has been asked to make a donation to the Ernest Biles Golf Tournament. All donations are used to provide sports scholarships to children participating in the Butts County Recreation Department. The Board agreed to make a donation of $500.
A motion was made by Mr. Jones to make a donation of $500 to the Ernest Biles Memorial Golf Tournament. This was seconded by Mr. Norris and approved unanimously.
Manager’s Report
Construction Update
- Nathan Thaxton/Brownlee/East Ball Road Water – No pipe laid this month, but much work has gone into hauling rock and trees removed to install the pipe in the right of way.
- West Butts Tank – A second preconstruction conference was held for GEFA on August 26th. The contractor will be on site in October with project completion scheduled in July 2015.
- Hwy. 16 Sewer East – The contractor has completed excavation of the deep wet well for the Colwell Road lift station.
Main Break – Ms. Seleb advised the Board that during an electrical storm on Labor Day evening (September 1, 2014) lightning struck the water main on Lee Maddox Road at 6:00 p.m. An air relief valve on the 20″ West Butts transmission main was stuck open at the same time. The Authority pumped 3.9 million gallons on September 2, 2014, with roughly 1.8 million gallons lost. The distribution crew and plant operators did a great job responding and keeping water levels up throughout the system.
Operations Overview – The average daily finished water pumped in August 2014 to the Authority, Jackson and Jenkinsburg from the Burford and Stewart plants was 2.5 million gallons per day, with a maximum of 2.8 million gallons per day. The rolling twelve-month average loss was 12.0% with the current month average loss of 7.6%. The total amount of finished water pumped in August by plant was: Burford – 74 million gallons and Stewart – 9 million gallons.
Water billing for August 2014 was $264,126, up 13% from July 2014 and up 27% from August 2013. Sewer billing for August 2014 was $60,415, up 12% from July 2014 and up 45% August 2013. This was the biggest billing month ever in sewer.
The average wastewater influent at the Bucksnort Ranch Land Application System was 278,000 gallons per day with an average daily effluent of 292,000 gallons per day and the maximum 7-day effluent was 329,000 gallons per day.
The total water customer base was 5,351 with active water customers numbering 4,834. There were five subdivision meters , four new taps, and three new subdivision sewer connections sold during the month of August. The total sewer customer base was 143, with active sewer customers numbering 141.
Financial Report – Ms. Seleb went over the financial summary for Water & Sewer Operations, and Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax (SPLOST) for August 2014. For the month, water operations income was $278,830 and expenses were $128,239. Water capital recovery fee revenue for the fiscal year so far is $9,110 with no
expenses. Sewer operations income for August was $74,423, and expenses were $5,963. Sewer capital recovery fee revenue for the fiscal year thus far is $9,841 with no expenses.
To date, $3,448,174 in revenue has been received in 2007-12 Special Purpose Local Options Sales Tax (SPLOST) funds with $295,977 remaining, all of which is budgeted to pay debt on the GEFA loan for 2007 expansion of the Bucksnort Ranch land application system. $548,955 has been collected in 2013-19 Special Purpose Local Options Sales Tax (SPLOST) with no funds expended. Total cash on hand at the end of August was $7,138,136.
This is $258,567 over the June 30, 2014 balances. Copies of financial summaries, combined fund balance sheets, and combined fund income statements are attached and made a part of these minutes.
Review Bills Paid – Board members were given copies of check registers for August 2014. Copies of these check registers are attached and made a part of these minutes.
Adjourn – Motion made by Mr. Norris to adjourn meeting at 6:15 p.m. This was seconded by Mr. Jones and approved unanimously.