PV Water Rates Going Up For Five Years • Ag Day Luncheon

COMMUNITY NEWS PV Water Rates Going Up For Five Years

On April 21, the Board of Directors of the Pajaro Valley Water Management Agency adopted higher rates for the next five years to fund projects and programs to help stop groundwater overdraft and seawater intrusion.

The rate increase for fiscal year 2021-22 will take effect Dec. 1, 2021, five months later than initially planned, while future adjustments will go into effect on July 1 of each year through 2025.

Augmentation charge for a rural residence is $115 now and will rise to $163 on July 1, 2025.

Augmentation charge inside delivered water zone is $338 per acre-foot now and will rise to $486 per acre foot on July 1, 2025.

Augmentation charge outside delivered water zone is $246 per acre-foot now and will rise to $346 per acre foot on July 1, 2025.

Delivered water charge is $392 per acre-foot now and will rise to $501 per acrefoot on July 1, 2025.

An acre-foot is 325,851 gallons of water.

The new charges for delivered water and groundwater augmentation will provide the revenue to support construction of the College Lake Integrated Resources Management Project, the Watsonville Slough System Managed Aquifer Recharge and Recovery Projects, water conservation programs, along with planning and permitting activities. The projects will add much needed supply to the agency’s supplemental water system. Use of supplemental water offsets groundwater production while helping to keep agriculture viable in the Pajaro Valley.

“As a grower, I pay for water. I pay for a lot of water and it’s very costly,” said Javier Zamora, who is on the water agency’s board and spoke during the public hearing. “I am not getting more money for my strawberries or vegetables but it is part of doing business. I can tell you this will be a difficult pill for me to swallow, very difficult.”

But he supported the increases, saying, “If we don’t do it, who else is going to come in and do it? No one will come with a magic wand and eliminate saltwater intrusion and say, ‘keep pumping as much as you want’ unfortunately that is not the case. We need to collaborate as individuals and community members and face our problem. We have to tackle things right away and not leave it for mañana. We gotta get it done and that’s what the Agency is trying to do.”

Leading up to the April 21 public hearings and vote on the rate setting ordinances, PV Water hosted a series of rate setting public workshops to provide information and respond to questions on the 2021 Cost of Service Rate Study.

An Ad Hoc Funding Committee, composed of ratepayers with representation from the City of Watsonville, small water districts, growers of different sizes and commodities, and individual well owners, reviewed and recommended for Board approval the rate study in February 2021.

“PV Water Rates” page 10

Ag Day Luncheon: Celebrating Spring & the Vaccine

The 2021 National Agriculture Day Spring Luncheon will take place outdoors Wednesday, May 19, with the theme, “Celebrating Spring and the Vaccine!”

The Santa Cruz County Farm Bureau, with the organization, Agri-Culture, will host the luncheon, at 11:30 a.m. Wednesday, May 19, at Patty Smith Park (outdoors) at the Santa Cruz County Fairgrounds. Tickets are $50 per person. Reservations are at http:// www.sccfb.com/news/national-agricultureday-spring-luncheon/or (831) 724-1356.

One of the highlights will be the presentation of the Al Smith Friend of Agriculture Award. Al Smith was the founder of Orchard Supply Hardware and donated 3,000 acres (Swanton Pacific Ranch) in the north coast to Cal Poly. The ranch has row crops, timber and even a one-third-scale railroad, which was Al’s hobby.

The award is presented annually to an individual, business or organization not involved in production agriculture but one who has done much for the industry. This year’s award will be presented by last year’s honoree, Sam Earnshaw.

Another feature is this year’s contest winners will be introduced.Farm Bureau and Agri-Culture co-sponsor a poster contest (grades K-6) and poetry contest (grades 7-12) in Santa Cruz County and Pajaro Valley schools. The winning entries will be displayed during the luncheon and a placemat featuring the 2019 poster contest winner, Luna Caddes, 6th grader from Santa Cruz Montessori School in Aptos will be on the tables. Also on the placemat will be the 2019 poetry contest winning entry by Bridget Smith, 7th grader from Monte Vista Christian School in Watsonville.

The following 2021 Agri-Culture Scholarships will be presented at the luncheon: the Jimmie Cox Memorial Scholarship, the Jeannie Witmer Memorial Scholarship. The Laura Brown Memorial Scholarship and the JJ Crosetti, Jr. Memorial Scholarship. n •••

For information call (831) 724-1356 or email sccfb@sbcglobal.net. Plenty of Free Customer Parking

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Affordable Housing Month Update

Housing Santa Cruz County, a coalition dedicated to making Santa Cruz County affordable to all, will observe Affordable Housing Month with a panel presentation Thursday, May 20, featuring Board of Supervisors Chair Bruce McPherson, Watsonville Mayor Jimmy Dutra, Santa Cruz Mayor Donna Meyers, Scotts Valley Mayor Derek Timm, and Capitola Vice Mayor Sam Storey talking about their community’s efforts to address the affordable housing needs of their residents.

Register in advance: https://tinyurl. com/SCHousing-afford-panel (Full URL: https://zoom.us/meeting/register/ tJEodOqtqDwpHtMK4jmghWVe8JiPd0ngPTUr)

——— Other events: May 19

• Encouraging landlords to participate in Housing Choice Voucher (Housing Authority Section 8) program. Register at https:// zoom.us/webinar/register/

WN_LlwSRzIbQeKX_aDgISxdrQ • Yes in My Back Yard YIMBY hosts a talk, “Why is the Rent So Damn

High?” from 7-8:30 p.m. on Zoom.

Register at https://us02web.zoom. us/meeting/register/tZAsfuqrqz0jGtab0Ag03eRlVYhSMcI-dXsM May 21

• Monterey Bay Economic Partnership explains Housing Elements and

Regional Housing Needs Allocations and how they impact planning efforts to meet housing needs, 10- 11:30 a.m. May 22

• By invitation only, groundbreaking in Live Oak for 11-chair Dientes

Community Dental Care clinic and 20,000-square-foot clinic for Santa

Cruz Community Health plus 57 affordable housing units in the second phase, 10-11 a.m. Watch live on Facebook, Dientes and Santa Cruz

Community Health May 25

• Ecovillage housing plan in development at Mount Calvary Lutheran

Church in Soquel using straw, wood and earth and teaching future residents building skills, 7-8 p.m. ———

See a full calendar of local #Affordable HousingMonth webinars, virtual workshops and community conversations at www.housingsanta cruzcounty.com/affordable-housing-month. •••

Budget Hearings Start June 21

On May 6, the County of Santa Cruz released a proposed budget of $881 million for 2021-22 and scheduled budget hearings to begin June 21 and conclude June 29.

As the county begins to emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic and recover from the CZU Lightning complex fires, the proposed budget allocates funding under the direction and vision of the Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors.

Despite a 13 percent reduction in spending from the prior fiscal year, the budget includes support for pandemic response, public safety and fire recovery. It incorporates a proposed $593 million general fund, down 2.7 percent from the prior fiscal year.

For details see http://www.santacruzcounty.us or use the online interactive tool at sccbudget.com.

••• Cannacraft To Pay $300,000 Settlement in Ad Case

On May 7, Santa Cruz County District Attorney Jeffrey Rosell announced a settlement in a civil action against Cannacraft, Inc. for false advertising violations.

Cannacraft is a licensed cultivator and manufacturer of cannabis products based in Sonoma County conducting business in California’s legal cannabis market.

Cannacraft agreed to pay $250,000 in civil penalties and $50,000 in restitution and investigative costs. Cannacraft also agreed to be bound by an injunction for 10 years.

The complaint alleged Cannacraft made representations regarding the efficacy of its Care By Design products that were not supported by competent and reliable scientific evidence including: “Cannabidiol can change gene expression and remove beta amyloid plaque, the hallmark of Alzheimer’s, from brain cells” and “Scientific and clinical studies have shown that CBD could be therapeutic for many conditions, including chronic pain, cancer, anxiety, diabetes, epilepsy, rheumatoid arthritis, PTSD, sleep dis- In California, the law applies to orders, alcoholism, cardiovascular disease, 800,000 students. antibiotic-resistant infections, and neuro- IDEA guaranteed that the federal logical ailments.” government would pay 40 percent of all

Local prosecutors in the Consumer special education costs. The federal govand Environmental Protection Unit. ernment since 1988 has funded on average worked with the California Food, Drug, just under 14 percent of its obligation, and Medical Device Task Force on this making it harder for school districts to case. The Task Force includes the District provide needed services to pupils with Attorney Offices of Alameda, Marin, disabilities. Monterey, Napa, Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, “Eight out of ten Californians are conShasta, Solano, and Sonoma counties. cerned their kids have fallen behind during

Cannacraft and its counsel coop- the pandemic and students with special erated with the Task Force’s investigation, needs are even more vulnerable to learning working together to change the adver- loss. The federal government’s continued tising, and stipulated to the judgment failure to honor its promise to those with without admitting liability, according to special needs is unjustifiable in a normal the Santa Cruz County District Attorney’s year, and in light of the pandemic’s impact, office, which said this False Advertising it should be addressed immediately,” Law settlement between law enforcement said Wilk. “2021 is the year to get this and a licensed California cannabis business done. These students deserve, and were may be the first of its kind. promised, nothing less.” ••• •••

Herlindo Fernandez Stimulus Payments Available to Homeless

HPromoted To Supervisor erlindo Fernandez has been promoted to Maintenance Supervisor in the People who don’t have a permanent address or a bank account may still qualify for economic impact payments, Pajaro Valley Unified according to the Internal Revenue Service. School District. While economic impact payments –

He has worked for also known as COVID relief or stimulus the school district for 24 payments — are made automatically to years, starting as a cus- most people, the IRS can’t issue a payment todian in 1997, moving to eligible Americans when information into the grounds about them isn’t available in the federal department in a lead- agency’s systems. ership role, working as maintenance specialist, Herlindo Fernandez The IRS urges community groups, employers and others to share this inforand most recently as an energy management mation to help more eligible people file a technician and planning specialist. tax return so they can receive everything

He is skilled at listening, processing they’re entitled to. information and implementing an action Stimulus payments are different from plan and his knowledge and understanding most other tax benefits — people can get of the maintenance and operations systems the payments even if they have little or no of the district are invaluable, according to income and even if they don’t usually file a the district’s announcement. tax return. This is true as long as they have

The position had been vacated. a Social Security number and are not being ••• supported by someone else who can claim

Push to Fully Fund Special Education them as a dependent.

State Senator Scott Wilk (R-Santa Clarita) For information, see www.IRS.gov. announces the introduction of Senate The $600 or $1,200 Golden State Joint Resolution 4 (SJR 4 ) urging the 117th Stimulus is available to low-income CaliCongress to fully fund the Individuals fornians facing hardship due to COVID-19. with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), These payments are issued after your 2020 legislation passed by Congress in 1975 to tax return is processed. See https://www. ensure students with disabilities get the ftb.ca.gov/about-ftb/newsroom/goldenacademic support needed to succeed. state-stimulus/index.html n

“PV Water Rates” from page 9

On Feb. 17, the Board adopted the Rate Study and Resolution 2021-05 Adopting Procedures for Public Hearing, Notice, and Protest Concerning Proposed Revisions to Augmentation Charge and Delivered Water Charge.

The rate structures, which include an augmentation charge based on pumped groundwater subject to Proposition 26, and a delivered water charge subject to Proposition 218 for blended recycled water supplied to growers in the coastal area, are similar to the rate structures in place.

The Rate Study provides the documentation to comply with Proposition 26, Proposition 218, and other legal requirements. Pajaro Valley Water is a state-chartered water management district formed to efficiently and economically manage existing and supplemental water supplies in order to prevent further increase in and to accomplish continuing reduction of, longterm overdraft. The agency also works to provide and ensure sufficient water supplies for present and future anticipated needs within its boundaries, generally the greater coastal Pajaro Valley. n •••

For more information, visit www.pvwater. org or www.facebook.com/PajaroValleyWater.