Also serving the communities of De Luz, Rainbow, Camp Pendleton, Pala and Pauma
The January 5 meeting of the Rainbow Municipal Water District was a welcome change from business as usual. Two new directors were sworn in. Public input was allowed on all issues. Agenda items were actually discussed before being voted on. I don’t mean the usual superficial and cursory procedures; probing and intelligent questions were asked, and substantive discussions took place. Information was sought as a basis for decision making. BRAVO!
But sadly, senior staff still doesn’t get it: their hypocrisy lingers on. During the course of the meeting, some board members and staff raised objections to Director Griffiths’ request to go down into the lift stations to see if the district’s planned gold plated replacements are needed. He is an engineer with many years of experience with pipes. He has paid for and obtained certification to go into confined spaces ; he even presented a letter from his doctor attesting to his fitness to make the descent. GM Ensminger expressed concern about the amount of staff time which would be required in order for him to do this. Yet Ensminger doesn’t understand the cost of having 6-8 staff members attend the board meetings ?
At the end of the last meeting district backed candidate Cari Dale (who was at her second meeting ever!) met with Joyce Tomlinson as she did after the December meeting. At that time, the two were conferring in the lobby area where small groups of people were talking. When she was heard to say the name of Russ Hatfield (her opponent), Tomlinson hurried the conversation outside. This time, Dale went through the boardroom to the area behind fences where only employees are allowed.
Two instances of hypocrisy and double standards are obvious here:
1. Staff time (Tomlinson’s with Dale) was being spent, but not on official district business. The district should not spend ratepayer funds in the form of salary paid to staff to support a candidate for office. (Especially after trying to deny staff time to a director on district business!)
2. The district has a policy that people who leave the lobby or boardroom areas of the building must sign in and obtain a badge. Apparently this wis being waived when staff doesn’t want those visits to be publicly recorded. For example, Ms.Dale’s visit with Tomlinson.
During the last election, family members of employees were even allowed to bring campaign material to district property. Staff provided documents free of charge to their chosen candidates; they charged everyone else 14 cents a page. The old gang is up to its usual tricks supporting naive newcomers who understand neither Rainbow’s issues nor the ethics of campaigning. Fairness issues aside, it was adequately demonstrated in the last election that being backed by the old guard at Rainbow is the kiss of death to a candidate. Both of their “status quo” candidates lost miserably and have not been seen at RMWD since. The “people’s candidates” were elected with over 70% of the vote. There must be a message in there somewhere.”.
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