BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó




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          |SENATE RULES COMMITTEE            |                       AB 1817|
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                                   THIRD READING 


          Bill No:  AB 1817
          Author:   Mark Stone (D) 
          Amended:  4/11/16 in Assembly
          Vote:     21 

           SENATE GOVERNANCE & FIN. COMMITTEE:  6-0, 5/11/16
           AYES:  Hertzberg, Beall, Hernandez, Lara, Moorlach, Pavley
           NO VOTE RECORDED:  Nguyen

           ASSEMBLY FLOOR:  53-16, 4/14/16 - See last page for vote

           SUBJECT:   Solid waste:  garbage and refuse disposal districts:  
                      board of directors


          SOURCE:    Monterey Regional Waste Management District


          DIGEST:  This bill increases the maximum amounts of compensation  
          that can be provided to a garbage and refuse disposal district's  
          board of directors.


          ANALYSIS:  


          Existing law:


          1)Allows a county board of supervisors to form a garbage and  
            refuse disposal district after determining, by resolution,  
            that a portion of the county is in need of a site for the  
            disposal of garbage and refuse and should be formed into a  
            district (AB 1054, Silhman, Chapter 964, Statutes of 1951).  









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          2)Allows a garbage and refuse disposal district's board of  
            director to receive a maximum of $50 per diem for each day of  
            attendance at board meetings and a maximum of $100 per diem in  
            any calendar month (SB 675, Grunsky, Chapter 232, Statutes of  
            1975).


          3)Allows board members of some other types of special districts  
            that provide waste disposal services, like community services  
            district and sanitary district board members, to be  
            compensated up $100 per meeting for up to six meetings per  
            month and allows those districts' boards to adopt ordinances  
            that increase board members' compensation.


          This bill increases the current statutory cap on compensation  
          for a garbage and refuse disposal district's board of directors.  
           Specifically, this bill:  


          1)Deletes the $50 per meeting limit on the amount of per diem  
            that a director can receive and, instead, authorizes the  
            board, by ordinance or resolution, to provide compensation  
            that does not exceed $100 per meeting or for each day of  
            service rendered as director by request of the board.   


          2)Deletes the $100 monthly limit on the amount of per diem  
            received by each director and, instead, authorizes a board  
            member to receive compensation for up to six days in a  
            calendar month. 


          3)Provides that reimbursement and compensation for meetings are  
            subject to existing law, which requires a governing board to  
            adopt a written policy to determine acceptable compensable  
            activities, and adopt written policies for reimbursing  
            expenses.  


          4)Makes other technical changes.








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          Background


          State law allows a county board of supervisors to form a garbage  
          and refuse disposal district after determining, by resolution,  
          that a portion of the county is in need of a site for the  
          disposal of garbage and refuse and should be formed into a  
          district.  State law prohibits any garbage and refuse disposal  
          district from being formed after October 1, 1961.


          A garbage and refuse disposal district's board of director may  
          receive a maximum of $50 per diem for each day of attendance at  
          board meetings and a maximum of $100 per diem in any calendar  
          month.  Board members may be reimbursed for their actual and  
          necessary expenses incurred in the performance of official  
          business of the district, as approved by the board.  These  
          limits on board members' compensation are lower than the limits  
          for board members of some other types of special districts that  
          provide waste disposal services.  For example, state law allows  
          community services district and sanitary district board members  
          to be compensated up $100 per meeting for up to six meetings per  
          month and allows those districts' boards to adopt ordinances  
          that increase board members' compensation.


          According to data collected by the State Controller's Office,  
          the Monterey Regional Waste Management District (MRWMD) is the  
          only special district still in existence that operates pursuant  
          to the statutes that govern garbage and refuse disposal  
          districts.  MRWMD was created in 1951 as the Monterey Peninsula  
          Garbage & Refuse Disposal District in response to the dumping  
          and burning of waste on coastal sand dunes in Pacific Grove,  
          Monterey, and Carmel.  In 1987, the District changed its name to  
          the Monterey Regional Waste Management District (MRWMD).  MRWMD  
          provides solid waste management and resource recovery, operates  
          the 315 acre Monterey Peninsula Landfill, and develops and  
          operates a number of other waste diversion and recycling  
          facilities and programs.  MRWMD is governed by board of  
          directors comprised of nine members who are appointed to  








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          four-year terms. 


          MRWMD officials note that as its board of director's  
          responsibilities has increased, the principal act that limits  
          directors' compensation remains unchanged.  They want the  
          Legislature to amend the statute that limits directors'  
          compensation to more closely align with statutes that govern  
          other waste disposal districts' boards.


          Comment


          Purpose of the bill.  The $50 per meeting and $100 per month  
          limits on compensation received by MRWMD's Board of Directors  
          were enacted in 1975.  During the past four decades, MRWMD has  
          increased its responsibilities and obligations due to an  
          expanding residential and commercial population and new  
          statutorily-required duties.  MRWMD directors now oversee a $24  
          million budget, the recovery of recyclable materials in the  
          waste stream, composting of green waste and food waste, receipt  
          of non-hazardous liquid waste, disposal of municipal solid  
          waste, and the operation of a landfill gas-to-electric energy  
          system.  Board members attend many more than two meetings per  
          month and often attend other trainings and workshops.  AB 1817  
          proposes to update the statute governing MRWMD directors'  
          compensation to align more closely with directors' expanded  
          responsibilities as well as to mirror the compensation rates of  
          other waste disposal districts in the state.


          FISCAL EFFECT:   Appropriation:    No          Fiscal  
          Com.:NoLocal:    No


          SUPPORT:   (Verified5/11/16)


          Monterey Regional Waste Management District (source)
          California Special Districts Association
          Monterey County Business Council








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          Monterey Peninsula Chamber of Commerce
          Save Our Shores
          The Offset Project


          OPPOSITION:   (Verified5/11/16)


          None received




          ASSEMBLY FLOOR:  53-16, 4/14/16
          AYES:  Alejo, Arambula, Atkins, Baker, Bloom, Bonilla, Bonta,  
            Brown, Burke, Calderon, Campos, Chau, Chiu, Chu, Cooley,  
            Cooper, Dababneh, Daly, Dodd, Eggman, Frazier, Cristina  
            Garcia, Eduardo Garcia, Gatto, Gipson, Gomez, Gonzalez,  
            Gordon, Roger Hernández, Holden, Jones-Sawyer, Lackey, Lopez,  
            Low, Maienschein, Medina, Mullin, Obernolte, O'Donnell, Olsen,  
            Quirk, Ridley-Thomas, Rodriguez, Santiago, Mark Stone,  
            Thurmond, Ting, Waldron, Weber, Wilk, Williams, Wood, Rendon
          NOES:  Travis Allen, Brough, Chang, Chávez, Beth Gaines,  
            Gallagher, Gray, Hadley, Harper, Jones, Kim, Mathis,  
            Patterson, Salas, Steinorth, Wagner
          NO VOTE RECORDED:  Achadjian, Bigelow, Dahle, Grove, Irwin,  
            Levine, Linder, Mayes, McCarty, Melendez, Nazarian

          Prepared by:Brian Weinberger / GOV. & F. / (916) 651-4119
          5/13/16 11:54:22


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