Call to Order – Chairman White called the meeting to order at 5:30 p.m. Board members present were J. B. White, Harvey Norris, Eddie Roberts, Jr., Burt Jones & Eddie Ford. Staff members present were General Manager Marcie Seleb and Joyce Hosey, Clerk to the Board.
Approval of Minutes from Last Meeting – Mr. Roberts made a motion to dispense with the reading of the minutes from the September 9, 2014 meeting. This was seconded by Mr. Ford and approved unanimously.
Donation Request from United Way – Ms. Seleb presented a request from United Way for a donation along with information about the organizations work in Butts County. The Board discussed what a worthwhile organization the United Way is and a motion was made by Mr. Jones to make a one time donation of $525 to the United Way. This was seconded by Mr. Norris and approved unanimously.
A copy of the United Way in Butts County review is attached and made a part of these minutes.
Confirm Hiring of New Employee – A motion was made by Mr. Jones to approve hiring of Daniel Sharpe on a sixty-day work test to start as a laborer with the distribution crew. This was seconded by Mr. Norris and approved unanimously.
Manager’s Report
Construction Update
- Nathan Thaxton/Brownlee/East Ball Road Water – Pipe has been laid to Station 19 and five (5) services have been installed.
- West Butts Tank – The grading subcontractor was on site as of October 13th.
- Hwy. 16 Sewer East – The work has essentially been completed with the crew planning startup on October 29th installing the gravity sewer and force main.
Agreement with Central Georgia Electric Membership Corporation (CGEMC) – A motion was made by Mr. Roberts to into an agreement for electric service with CGEMC at the Colwell lift station site which requires payment of $15,198 in charges to extend three phase service to the site. This was seconded by Mr. Ford and approved unanimously.
Hamilton State Bank Certificates of Deposit (CD) Offer – Ms. Seleb advised the Board that Hamilton Bank has offered the Authority an opportunity to purchase five-year CD’s at an interest rate of 1.5% with no penalty for early withdrawal and a one-time interest rate increase as rates rise.
A motion was made by Mr. Ford to purchase a $1,000,000 CD for Water Operations and a $500,000 CD for Sewer Operations from Hamilton State Bank with an interest rate of 1.5%, no penalty for early withdrawal, and a one-time interest rate bump up. This was seconded by Mr. Roberts and approved unanimously.
Operations Overview – The average daily finished water pumped in September 2014 to the Authority, Jackson and Jenkinsburg from the Burford and Stewart plants was 2.7 million gallons per day, with a maximum of 4.0 million gallons per day. The rolling twelve-month average loss was 12.7% with the current month average loss of 20.6%. The higher average loss was due to the main breaks experienced on Labor Day. The total amount of finished water pumped in September by each plant was: Burford – 73 million gallons and Stewart – 7 million gallons.
Water billing for September 2014 was $237,359, down 9% from August 2014 and up 7% from September 2013. Sewer billing for September 2014 was $55,418, down 9% from August 2014 and up 25% September 2013.
The average wastewater influent at the Bucksnort Ranch Land Application System was 290,000 gallons per day with an average daily effluent of 268,000 gallons per day and the maximum 7-day effluent was 329,000 gallons per day.
The total water customer base was 5,343 with active water customers numbering 4,827. There were no taps sold during the month of September. The total sewer customer base was 143, with active sewer customers numbering 141.
Quarterly Local Government Meeting – Quarterly local government meeting to be held at Flovilla City Hall on Thursday, November 13th at 6:15.
Financial Report – Ms. Seleb went over the financial summary for Water & Sewer Operations, and Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax (SPLOST) for September 2014. For the month, water operations income was $220,172 and expenses were $128,947. Water capital recovery fee revenue for the fiscal year so far is $9,141 with interest expense of $1,463. Sewer operations income for September was $56,432, and expenses were $14,104. Sewer capital recovery fee revenue for the fiscal year thus far is $9,850 with no expenses.
To date, $3,448,210 in revenue has been received in 2007-12 Special Purpose Local Options Sales Tax (SPLOST) funds with $296,013 remaining, all of which is budgeted to pay debt on the GEFA loan for 2007 expansion of the Bucksnort Ranch land application system. $625,900 has been collected in 2013-19 Special Purpose Local Options Sales Tax (SPLOST) with no funds expended.
Total cash on hand at the end of August was $7,322,946. This is $443,377 over the June 30, 2014 balances. Copies of financial summaries, combined fund balance sheets, and combined fund income statements are attached and made a part of these minutes.
Review Bills Paid – Board members were given a copies of check registers for September 2014. The check registers are attached and made a part of these minutes.
Adjourn – Motion made by Mr. Norris to adjourn meeting at 6:15 p.m. This was seconded by Mr. Jones and approved unanimously.