MID Board Report Archive

Modesto Irrigation District (MID) Board Meeting of Tuesday, Sept. 25, 2007
Contact: MID Public Affairs Department, Kate Hora, 209 526-7454
The next MID Board meetings will be October 16, 23 and 30, 2007.

The MID Board Report is a summary of highlights of meetings of the MID Board of Directors and not a complete or official record of proceedings. Official records of proceedings of the MID Board of Directors are contained in the Minutes of meetings of the Board of Directors . For information about the Minutes, please contact the Office of the Board Secretary, 1231 Eleventh Street, Modesto, CA 95350, telephone 209 526-7360, 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. Monday – Friday, excluding holidays.

Staff and director reports

Water report

• According to Walt Ward, Assistant General Manager for Water Operations, storage in the Hetch Hetchy system is 67 percent capacity. Water managers at Don Pedro Reservoir have been shaping an attraction pulse” of water to send down the Tuolumne River to benefit Chinook salmon returning to spawn this fall. Temperatures should be in the high 80s for the next 10 days. Meteorologists are discussing the La Niña weather pattern apparently forming in the eastern Pacific. La Niña conditions are a harbinger of above-normal winter precipitation in the Pacific Northwest and southeastern U.S. but a sign of normal or below-normal precipitation in the Southwest.

Records retention program

• Regulatory Administrator Joy Warren presented a proposed records retention program, a primary goal of which is to preserve the District records required by law, while avoiding the expense of unneeded storage. Such records include electronic and paper documents along with various types of digital files. Staff will recommend that a consultant with specialized expertise be retained to assist with policy implementation and training.

Approved by unanimous vote

• Revision of the Investment Policy Statement for the Supplemental Retirement Plan – B Fund, increasing the asset allocation from 10 percent international stocks to 20 percent. The investment allocation will now be 80 percent domestic stocks, 20 percent international. The Retirement Committee has already approved this change.
• A resolution approving a 33 percent economic potential scenario as the MID’s 2007-2016 energy efficiency target that will be submitted to the California Energy Commission.
• A resolution directing the General Manager to explore forming a Joint Powers Authority with Turlock Irrigation District for insurance purposes.

Informational workshops

Roger VanHoy, Assistant General Manager for Electric Resources, presented highlights of that division’s 2008 operations and maintenance (O&M) budget, pointing out several items that have changed since the 2008 budget forecast prepared a year ago and several connections between the capital and O&M budgets. Highlights of the presentation included:

• 95 percent of the O&M budget is purchased power and fuel ($218 out of $229.8 million).
• 11 percent of purchased power in 2008 will be wind ($18.7 out of $173.7 million).
• Total power supply cost rose from 8.6 cents/kilowatthour (kWh) to 8.8 cents/kWh compared to the 2006 projection.
• Purchased power and fuel costs rose from 7.3 cents/kWh to 7.7 cents/kWh compared to the 2006 projection.
• Power supply-related capital projects include Reciprocating Gas Engines, Lodi Power Plant and several partnership transmission projects.
• Energy costs range from baseload resources such as San Juan Generation Station – 516  gigawatthours (GWh) at 7.7 cents/kWh to peaking resources such as McClure Generation Station – 17 GWh at 17.9 cents/kWh.

2008 Budget Workshop (only major items are noted below)

• Human Resources Division proposal capital budget: $60,000
• $35,000 – Reconfigure office space due to transfer of safety, training and retirement functions to Human Resources.
  
  
• Information Technology Department proposed capital budget: $3,400,000
  Several items are required by North American Electric Reliability Corporation mandates for the electric utility sector. Others are critical in the event of disaster operations and post-disaster recovery activities.
• $900,000 – Replace MID-wide mobile radio system. (NERC, disaster recovery)
• $600,000 – Implement storage area network. (NERC)
• $400,000 – Replace 14 servers.
• $250,000 – Construct backup data and operations control center. (NERC, disaster recovery)
• $250,000 – Acquire transmission outage application system. (NERC)
• $250,000 – Design/build redundant microwave link between Mountain House substation and Service Center (Tracy Substation backup microwave). (NERC)
  
  
• Finance and Treasurer Division proposed capital budget: $897,800
• $200,000 – Replace obsolete 20-year old air conditioning units (one has already failed) for which parts are increasingly difficult to find.
  
  
• Modesto Regional Water Treatment Plant proposed capital budget: $43,373,700
  MID’s drinking water treatment plant. Department is referred to as Domestic Water in MID budget documents. All expenses are passed through to the City of Modesto at cost and have no impact on either MID irrigation rates or electric rates.
  • $43,218,000 – Phase Two Expansion Modesto Regional Water Treatment Plant
    
    
• Water Operations proposed capital budget: $537,700
• $140,000 – Install concrete lining in one of the few remaining portions of unlined irrigation canal.
• $140,000 – Take advantage of slowdown in construction industry by purchasing two good quality used pieces of earth-moving equipment at favorable prices.