ITEM:		CONSENT CALENDAR
7.	CONSIDER CONTRACT AMENDMENT WITH IDIAS CONSULTING FOR WATER DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM PERMITTING ASSISTANCE
Meeting Date:			July 7, 2005	Budgeted:	$12,500
From:			David A. Berger, General Manager	Program/ Line Item No.:	2-5-5 Acct. No. 4-7855.03
Prepared By:			Henrietta Stern	Cost Estimate:	$12,500
General Counsel Approval: N/A
Committee Recommendation: The Administrative Committee reviewed this item on July 18, 2005 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 MPWMD Rules and Regulations governing water distribution systems. Specifically, the Board will consider extension of the contract period for Fiscal Year (FY) 2005-2006 for a not-to-exceed amount of $12,500. 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 of Implementation Guidelines and related materials associated with the pending approval of Ordinance No. 122, which creates a multi-level, impact-based permit review process for Water Distribution System (WDS) applications.

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 assess completeness of applications within the 30-day deadline;

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

Ø help write CEQA-based comments;

Ø help prepare draft findings and conditions of approval for WDS applications;

Ø conduct field visits to well sites;

Ø conduct research on WDS production and regulatory compliance.

RECOMMENDATION: Staff recommends that the Board authorize the General Manager to extend the IDias Consulting contract for FY 2005-2006. The Administrative Committee reviewed this item at its July 7, 2005 meeting and voted 2 to 0 to recommend approval. If this item is adopted along with the Consent Calendar, staff will execute a contract amendment for a not-to-exceed amount of $12,500 for work in this next fiscal year.

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 STAFF/RESOURCES: The use of IDias Consulting during FY 2003-2004 and FY 2004-2005 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. The FY 2004-2005 budgeted amount of $25,000 was halved to $12,500 for FY 2005-2006. This amount will be sufficient to focus on the most critical WDS permitting tasks for which staff needs assistance. For reference, the cumulative Idias invoices for July 2004 through May 2005 total $13,825; the invoice for June 2005 has yet to be received.

EXHIBITS

7-A IDias Consulting Scope of Work for FY 2005-2006

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