The (CA) 2010-02-21 OUR REGION METRO FINAL B1 Robert Lewis rlewis@sacbee.

com RIO LINDA-ELVERTA DISTRICT Water system upgrades lag HEALTH THREAT REMAINS AMID BOARD, LABOR STRIFE Elected officials managing the drinking water system for about 4,600 customers in Rio Linda and Elverta still haven't upgraded aging infrastructure that the state warned more than two years ago is a public health threat. The state Department of Public Health, which issued a compliance order against the Rio Linda-Elverta Community Water District district in 2007 for unhealthy conditions, issued a second such order in December. The water district has dangerously low water pressure that could lead to water contamination, according to the orders. The plan for upgrading the aging system has been a subject of intense political battles pitting a majority of the current board against former board members and their supporters. Voters elected several new board members in 2008 to join now-President Mary Harris on what was dubbed the "reform" slate. That new slate, which said it wanted to control spending, has been mired by political battles and distracted by contentious labor negotiations and a recent allegation of a conflict of interest against a board member. "When you say Rio Linda water district, people just roll their eyes and say it's fortunate they're not an important part of the area's infrastructure plans," said Ronald Stork, senior policy advocate for the environmental group Friends of the River. "If there's no adult supervision by somebody, the children can just get in trouble." The California Department of Public Health started paying attention to the district two years ago. The state requires systems to maintain water pressure at 20 pounds per square inch, but Rio Linda's dropped as low as 8 psi, according to the compliance order the state Department of Public Health issued against the district in November 2007. Low pressure can allow pathogens to build and "create a health risk to consumers," the order states. In Rio Linda-Elverta, fixing that problem will mean adding costly new wells to the water system. The old board wanted three new wells, which each are referred to by their number in the system -- wells 14, 15 and 16, said Gilbert Tafoya, former interim general manager. The new board, however, scuttled plans about a year ago for well 14 -- for which the district had already spent about $1 million, Harris said. The new board said well 14 would require too many ongoing costs; instead, it approved moving forward with well 17. State public health officials have said the addition of wells 15, 16 and 17 would be adequate to increase the system's pressure and fix the unsafe conditions. The district, however, doesn't have firm sites for wells 16 and 17, said interim general manager William Michael Cardenas. And it's unclear when the district will be able to start construction. It also is unclear what the state Department of Public Health has been doing for the past two years to ensure that the water district comes into compliance. Department officials declined numerous interview requests. State officials have met regularly with the district but didn't apparently know about the new board's decision to scrap well 14 until August 2009, according to the most recent compliance order. In a message left after work hours Thursday, a public information officer for the department said the state has no plans to issue sanctions against the water district.

"The district has met historical deadlines," said Ralph Montano, a Public Health Department press officer. The state extended several deadlines when the district hired a new general manager, he added. John Woodling, executive director of the Sacramento Regional Water Authority, said despite all the political turmoil in Rio Linda-Elverta, the district has "a system that has worked for this region." In these tough financial times, all water districts have the challenge of balancing maintenance needs with the desire to keep rates reasonable for residents, Woodling said. Harris, the board president, said the district is facing many fixed expenses and needs to cut labor costs. District leaders have been negotiating with Teamsters Local 150, but Harris couldn't discuss specifics because the talks are ongoing. The negotiations have been contentious. The union has filed a couple of complaints with the Public Employment Relations Board, alleging outrageous wage and benefit cuts geared at breaking the union. The district spent more than $84,000 in 2009 for the lawyers handling labor negotiations, according to records obtained through a Public Records Act request. The district paid another $48,000 for special counsel in 2009, public records show. That's for a district with a $2 million annual operating budget. "It's a terrible thing that you have to pay those amounts," Harris said. Also distracting district leaders is the latest in back-and-forth allegations of impropriety. Some residents and opponents of the current board have claimed that board member Vivien Spicer-Johnson has a conflict of interest. The Sacramento County District Attorney's Office is looking into allegations that SpicerJohnson's personal business benefited from ratepayer money. Spicer-Johnson runs a small community newspaper, North Country News. In October 2009, the water district paid $389.50 to run two advertisements in Johnson's paper, according to water district records. The District Attorney's Office sent a letter to the water district dated Jan. 29 inquiring about the alleged conflict of interest. The letter points out that government code says, "Public officials may not be financially interested in any contract made by them in their official capacity or by any body or board of which they are members," and asks the water district to respond to the allegations. Spicer-Johnson would not comment on the allegations. "If it's really of any importance, I think they would have sent it directly to me," SpicerJohnson said. Harris said she wasn't sure how such a payment got approved. She said she skims through district expenditures. "But I don't look at every line item," Harris said. "I have been such the little watchdog with every penny that has gone in and out that I kind of left it up to the finance committee." Call The Bee's Robert Lewis, (916) 321-1061. Text