1999-10-27 Charter Commission Minutes

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minutes 10-27-99Page 13 of 48 turned off. It’s going to make people think. But, if the prices were to start going up because a Commission were to set it, and it has to be realistic to cut the cost and bring costs into a reasonable ballpark, would you still be willing to help? PAVAO: Let me understand the question first. You’re saying that if the Sewer Department had a Commission, would we still do the billing? MARTIN: Would you be willing to help? PAVAO: Yes, definitely. We already gave our word that we would. We would do the billing and we’d see what kind changes and modifications to our rules and regs are necessary to enforce the billing. MARTIN: Okay, one last question, I guess, then, and I’ll pass it on. As far as costs to do the billing, would you be willing to assume that, or would you charge Wastewater, which has no money at this point? PAVAO: That was discussed between Mr. Boucher and I, and we had left that kind of open, but the discussion was to, at some point in time, come up with some equitable reimbursement for our labor. MARTIN: Thank you, Chair. RAY: Mr. Santangelo. SANTANGELO: Just a quick observation, you guys. I have a sense that you’ve been talking to the Council so much that you’re treating us the same way, and we’re totally different. Number one, I don’t think it’s our job to get involved in a domestic, and there’s a part of this, because I was involved in it before, that is kind of a domestic. We’re about good government, and it’s not to convince us on all these little details, and alls we’re going to do is put things before the public. And you put something before the public that guarantees we’re going to get a rate hike, because you took it out of their hands, and I don’t know that you’re going to look at something getting passed. So, we’re looking at better government. So, I go back to these pros and cons. Now, one of the things I’ll take, that say, is on my side, is while I was in government, I took a lot of time to study solid waste and wastewater. I took a couple of trips to the mainland and went to some of the bigger ones in the United States, and I found that, generally speaking, the Waste Department was separate from a delivery system. In fact, more often, it seems appropriate to me to combine solid waste and wastewater, and in terms of government, maybe that’s what we should be looking at. So, I have one question, but mainly I just want to get that across. For the rest of the Commissioners too, what are we supposed to be involved here, and I think a lot of the discussion has to do with stuff that shouldn’t be things that we’re considering. Just basically, it’s good to put it forward, so it comes down to that. In all honesty, with your experience, or Peter’s, or yours, Milton, how often, or how prudent is it to take a water delivery system, that one is a consumable versus a waste, and combine those? And again, looking at our solid waste, and our wastewater, and possibly combining that and enterprising it. I heard you say, from five e-mails, again, figures don’t lie, but sometimes we get carried away with the figures, that you had a pretty good percentage of those respondents that this was okay. I found it quite different but I’d like to get your opinion, and that’s all I have to ask. PAVAO: The only occurrence I know is what I heard about the Oahu Water Supply, where they made an attempt. They spent, I think, about a year trying to study the thing; they tried it and it didn’t last, and that’s the only thing I know of. But, I’m sure on the mainland, and as I said, this state is unique to the mainland, so a lot of things in the mainland should not be followed here because we are unique, but in the mainland, I know there’s wastewater and water companies combined. But my only knowledge here file://\\coh01\cohweb\council\charter_commission\minutes\minutes 10-27-99.html7/1/2011