Rosa Rosales

Due to the absence of the Chairperson, Leslie Girard was elected as the Interim Chairperson. Key actions included ratifying a prior approval for the Summary of Actions for a Special Hearing Board Meeting of April 24, 2025, due to a procedural correction, and reapproving the Revised Hearing Board Meeting Schedule for Calendar Year 2025, also due to a procedural correction. The Board also accepted and filed the Summary of Actions for the Hearing Board Meeting of May 9, 2025. The primary focus was conducting a public hearing and subsequently approving the variance order for Docket 25-004 concerning the Monterey Regional Waste Management District dba ReGen Monterey Interim Variance Project.

The agenda for the meeting included the call to order, roll call, and the nominations and election of the 2026 Hearing Board Chair and Vice Chair. Discussions included public comments for items not on the agenda, accepting and filing the summary of actions for the December 12, 2025, meeting, and approving the Hearing Board Meeting Schedule for Calendar Year 2026. The meeting featured a Public Hearing addressing Docket 26-001 (Monterey Regional Waste Management District dba ReGen Monterey Variance Project) and Docket 26-002 (Salinas Valley Solid Waste Authority Interim Variance Project), which involved presentations, staff reports, public comment, discussion, and the issuance of decisions or orders with specified conditions.

The meeting focused on procedural matters related to remote meetings under AB 361, including receiving a report and approving the requirements for continued remote meetings for the next 30 days, ending January 14, 2022. A significant portion of the meeting involved receiving the Draft Financial Statements and the Independent Audit Report for the Year Ended June 30, 2021, prepared by Badawi & Associates, and recommending its acceptance by the Board of Directors. The audit report covered areas such as revenue recognition, pension and OPEB accounting, and confirmed an unmodified opinion on the financial statements.

The Hearing Board meeting addressed necessary reapprovals/ratifications due to inadvertent participation by a non-voting member in prior actions. The Board approved the Revised Hearing Board Meeting Schedule for Calendar Year 2025. A public hearing was conducted for Docket 24-002 concerning the City of Santa Cruz Resource Recovery Facility, specifically regarding the modification of the Final Compliance Date and Extension of the Regular Variance. Following testimony from petitioners and staff, the Board voted to approve the variance order for Docket 24-002.

The Budget/Personnel/Nominating Committee meeting involved several key actions. The committee unanimously approved items on the Consent Agenda, which included accepting and filing the Summary of Actions from the June 18, 2025 meeting. Under the Regular Agenda, the committee received and accepted the Monterey County Treasurer's Report on Investments for the quarter ended June 30, 2025. Furthermore, the committee received a report and recommended that the Board of Directors approve Fiscal Year 2025-26 budget revisions as detailed in Schedule A.