To: Honorable Mayor and Members of Town Council
From: Mark Marlowe, P.E., Utilities Director
Title
Resolution Approving the Amended and Restated Intergovernmental Agreement Establishing the Chatfield Watershed Authority and Bylaws
Body
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Executive Summary
The purpose of this memorandum is to approve the amended and restated Intergovernmental Agreement Establishing the Chatfield Watershed Authority (CWA) and Bylaws which changed the governance structure of the Authority, membership voting process, and the roll of various committees. The genesis for this initiative is the thinking by the current leadership that the Authority needs to get elected officials more engaged with providing guidance on the overall policy direction of the Authority.
To this end, a governance subcommittee was established in fall 2015. Council Member Mark Heath, has served on this subcommittee with support from the Utilities Director. Key aspects of the existing intergovernmental agreement (IGA) and Bylaws are as follows:
1. All members have a seat on the board, meaning the Authority has a 22 member Board.
2. Votes are by simple majority, except that a weighted vote can be invoked according to amount paid in membership dues for key decisions.
3. Membership dues are calculated using a complicated formula.
4. There are no elected officials on the current Board.
The basic revised structure includes a five member Board with a permanent elected official from Douglas County, Jefferson County and Castle Rock, two at-large Board members - one elected by water and sanitation districts, and one elected by other paying members. Castle Rock, Douglas County and Jefferson County will be the primary funding members under the new structure. The initial year costs will be slightly higher for Castle Rock then what the costs are under the current structure by approximately $7,000 to $8,000.
The benefits of the revised structure include:
1. Policy direction and oversight by elected officials in the watershed.
2. More weight for the organization in dealing with the Water Quality Control Commission, and State and Federal government entities in general.
3. Smaller board that will be able to operate in a more nimble and effective manner.
4. Simpler membership dues structure.
5. More fiscal oversight.
The existing CWA Board approved the revised governance IGA, Bylaws and membership dues structure on April 26, 2016. The individual members will now go back to their individual Boards, Councils and Commissions in May and June to approve the documents. Final membership will be determined by which entities approve. At this point, it is expected all current entities will approve and continue their membership.
History of Past Town Council, Boards & Commissions, or Other Discussions
On February 23, 2016, the existing CWA Board considered the revised draft IGA and Bylaws and requested additional non-substantive changes.
On January 27, 2016, the Utilities Commission recommended Council approve the revised IGA and Bylaws as presented.
On April 27, 2016, the Utilities Commission recommended Council approve the agreement, bylaws, and proposed dues structure as presented.
Discussion
The Authority is a designated water quality management agency, established in 1984 under the authority of the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE), whose mission is to promote protection of water quality in the Chatfield Watershed for recreation, fisheries, drinking water supplies and other beneficial uses through Chatfield Reservoir Control Regulation No. 73 (paraphrased from Chatfield Watershed Authority Website, 2013). The Authority is made up of 22 paying membership entities including counties, municipalities, water and sanitation districts and other public and private entities that have a material impact on the watershed or otherwise have a vested interest in the Authority. Membership entities financially contribute to the Authority and receive a weighted vote based on level of contribution. The Town has been involved with the Authority for over 25 years and continues to participate as a member by paying annual dues, attending monthly board and technical review committee meetings, and implementing point source, nonpoint source and stormwater controls.
This review of the governance structure of the Authority is a continuation of a process that began in 2014 to better evaluate the long-term funding needs to address the concerns in the watershed and subsequently identify strategies for meeting those funding needs.
Current member dues in the Chatfield Watershed Authority are around $173,000 of which the Town accounts for roughly 32%, or $55,360. It is important to note that the Town has a comprehensive watershed protection program in place for its portion of the Chatfield Watershed including a robust funding source through the stormwater enterprise fund. Other portions of the Chatfield Watershed may have less developed programs in place and less robust funding mechanisms.
The process for reviewing the governance structure was through a committee (Chatfield IGA Committee) that included member representatives and elected officials from Douglas County, Jefferson County, Denver Water, Centennial Water & Sanitation District, Dominion Water & Sanitation District and the Town of Castle Rock. The committee reviewed the existing Chatfield Intergovernmental Agreement, Bylaws and revised membership dues structure (see Exhibit 1), discussed what the end goal is with respect to how the Authority will function going forward, reviewed policy issues affecting funding, direction of organization to meet water quality mandates and decision-making on use of funds and developed a new governance structure, IGA and Bylaws. Council Member Mark Heath served on the committee for Castle Rock with support from the Utilities Director.
Staff Recommendation
Staff recommends approval of the amended and restated Intergovernmental Agreement Establishing the Chatfield Watershed Authority and Bylaws as shown in Exhibit 1.
Proposed Motion
“I move to approve the Resolution as introduced by title.”
Attachments
Attachment A: Resolution
Exhibit 1: Agreement, Bylaws, and revised dues structure