Term limits for water board members are a Band-Aid approach and
a larger symptom of a much deeper problem: voter apathy.
Term limits for water board members are a Band-Aid approach and a larger symptom of a much deeper problem: voter apathy. The Santa Clara Valley Water District Board of Directors voted 5-2 Tuesday to put term limits on the ballot. Directors Joe Judge and Larry Wilson voted no.
But will it solve the problem? Unlikely. Although water board members seem to stay forever – there are two who have served for more than 20 years – it is the voters who need to remove them when their terms expire.
The right to run for and serve on a council or board is the essence of democracy, and the core of that is letting voters decide who serves and who does not. It takes months, even years, for new directors to get up to speed, and the institutional knowledge lost by term limits would mean more reliance on staff members, who are not elected. Plus, the ballot measure will cost the district at least $1.2 million, a hefty sum when directors are talking about raising water rates, asking for conservation, and predicting cuts in next year’s budget.
District is insulated from criticism
Some of the problems will be mitigated with Assemblyman Joe Coto’s bill that includes a host of good-government reforms. For one, the bill requires a one-year wait before a board member can take a job with the district. This comes after one board member was selected for a high-paying job in the district. The bill also includes other reforms, such as posting agendas 10 days in advance of meetings and approving travel at those public meetings. These reforms will help. But the real answers come from voters.
Part of the problem is the district is insulated from criticism when it comes to raising water rates, something directors have approved every year since 2001. That insulation comes in part because the district is a water wholesaler, and when they raise rates, cities such as Morgan Hill must follow suit. So who hears from disgruntled residents? Not the water district, that’s for sure.
It’s time to take responsibility
Very few people could explain what it is exactly the water district does, and even fewer attend the Tuesday meetings. The district has more than 800 employees and a budget of $411 million. The district should be commended for broadcasting meetings on the Web, giving the average citizen more insight into how decisions are made. But perhaps more publicity, and maybe even televising the meetings, is needed. Voters need to pay attention and vote out those who aren’t doing an adequate job. It’s time to take responsibility as a citizen. Monitor the actions of directors. If you don’t like what they’re doing, vote them out. That’s the way. Not term limits.
