WATER DEMAND COMMITTEE
ITEM:		ACTION ITEMS
2.	Discuss and Provide Feedback on Amendments to District Rules 11, 20, 21 and 23 Related to Policies and Procedures in the Water Demand Division
Meeting Date:			September 1, 2005
From:			David A. Berger,
			General Manager
Prepared by:			Stephanie Pintar

SUMMARY: On August 2, 2005, the Water Demand Committee began reviewing staff-proposed amendments to Rules 11, 21 and 23. The amendments reflect policies, procedures and practices in the Water Demand Division and clarify language that is outdated or confusing. A number of further modifications were recommended by the Water Demand Committee. During the past month, staff has amended the rules to reflect the direction of the committee, and has begun to rearrange the rules so that Rule 21 reflects application requirements and Rule 23 reflects the permit process. Due to a scheduled vacation and the extent and complexity of revisions to Rule 23, amendments to Rule 23 have not been completed in time to be included in the Water Demand Committee packet.

Attached as Exhibit 2-A is the second draft of proposed modifications to Rules 11, 20, and 21. Amendments to Rule 20 were made after the last Water Demand Committee meeting and have not been reviewed by the committee or by District counsel. District counsel has not had the opportunity to review or comment on the changes that were recommended by the Water Demand Committee at the August meeting. Staff will aim to provide the amendments to Rule 23 at the September 1, 2005 Water Demand Committee meeting. The committee can decide if they would like to walk through the edits at that meeting or possibly set a subsequent meeting to review Rule 23 before the October committee meeting.

DISCUSSION: Modifications to Rule 20 reflect the direction of the Water Demand Committee at its August 2, 2005 meeting to group rules into specific categories, such as “application requirements” and “process.” Rule 20 identifies situations that require permits, and staff has amended the rule to specify the types of actions that require a water permit.

Changes to Rules 11 and 21 are reflective of the direction of the Water Demand Committee as outlined in the draft minutes of the August 2, 2005 meeting. The minutes are found as Exhibit 1-A in Action Item 1.

RECOMMENDATION: The Water Demand Committee should discuss the proposed rule changes and provide feedback to staff. Changes to existing rules are shown in bold italics (additions) and in strikeout (deletions).

BACKGROUND: The proposed ordinance is the result of staff having identified a number of permitting practices and policies that require clarification before the completion of the Policies and Procedures Manual. Before the manual can be completed, staff is requesting a number of policies, procedures, and practices be incorporated into the rules and regulations to allow consistency in application. Staff also plans to get input from the TAC on draft text changes.

Attached for the Committee’s reference is a copy of the staff report for the August 2, 2005 meeting, which contains the first draft of modifications to Rules 11, 20, 21 and 23.

EXHIBITS

2-A Second draft of proposed modifications to Rules 11, 20 and 21

2-B Staff report from August 2, 2005 Water Demand Committee Meeting