ITEM:	CONSENT CALENDAR
6.	CONSIDER CONTRACT AMENDMENT WITH IDIAS CONSULTING FOR WATER DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM PERMITTING ASSISTANCE
Meeting Date:		July 19, 2004	Budgeted: $25,000
Staff Contact:		Henrietta Stern	Program No.: 2-6-5, Acct. No. 7855.03
			Cost Estimate: $25,000
General Counsel Approval: N/A
Committee Recommendation: The Administrative Committee reviewed this item on July 12, 2004 and recommended approval.
CEQA Compliance: N/A

SUMMARY: The Board will consider amendment of an existing contract with IDias Consulting to assist staff with implementation of regulations governing water distribution systems. Specifically, the Board will consider extension of the contract period for Fiscal Year (FY) 2004-2005 for a not-to-exceed amount of $25,000. The assistance provided by IDias Consulting since April 2003 has greatly helped staff prepare required documents in a timely manner, and enhanced the completeness and quality of District work products, especially during periods of time when there has been competition for staff effort by other projects (e.g., Water Supply Project EIR, aquifer storage and recovery (ASR) testing, and Seaside Basin Groundwater Management Plan). It is anticipated that IDias Consulting will continue to assist staff in development and implementation of proposed modifications to the Water Distribution System (WDS) regulations in the near future.

Specific examples of consultant tasks include, but are not limited to:

Ø help write technical procedures for well testing and other related data requirements;

Ø help write completion letters for applications received within the 30-day deadline;

Ø help write CEQA-based comments;

Ø help write findings related to the capacity of WDS’s;

Ø evaluate well logs and related data to assess the physical capacity of WDS’s;

Ø conduct field visits to well sites;

Ø conduct research on WDS’s production and regulatory compliance.

RECOMMENDATION: Staff recommends that the Board authorize the General Manager to extend the IDias Consulting contract for FY 2004-2005. The Administrative Committee reviewed this item at its July 12, 2004 meeting and voted 2 to 0 to recommend approval. The committee noted that the Cal-Am’s proposed water connection moratorium will likely increase applications for private wells and increase staff work load. If this item is adopted along with the Consent Calendar, staff will execute a contract amendment for a not-to-exceed amount of $25,000 for this work.

BACKGROUND AND DISCUSSION: At its March 17, 2003 meeting, the Board authorized staff to contract with IDias Consulting to assist in the implementation of WDS regulations. IDias Consulting was selected among three firms that submitted proposals because of IDias’ extensive field experience with wells within the District, extensive local agency experience (former Monterey County Health Department employee), positive comments by references (including two local agencies), previous experience working with District staff, knowledge of District regulations and related issues, and lowest average cost per hour ($70). Since April 2003, staff has had a successful working relationship with the consultant, which has significantly eased staff’s workload burden with respect to the WDS permitting process.

IMPACT TO DISTRICT RESOURCES: The use of IDias Consulting during FY 2003-2004 has greatly helped staff meet pressing deadlines to comply with CEQA or the State Permit Streamlining Act without compromising work product quality or adversely affecting other high-priority projects. The original FY 2003-2004 budgeted amount of $70,000 was reduced to $51,000 at the FY 2003-2004 mid-year budget adjustment as additional anticipated funds were not needed. The current FY 2004-2005 budgeted amount of $25,000 will be sufficient to focus on the most critical WDS permitting tasks for which staff needs assistance.

LIST OF EXHIBITS:

6-A IDias Consulting Scope of Work for FY 2004-2005

U:\staff\word\boardpacket\2004\2004boardpacket\20040719\ConsentCalendar\06\item6.doc