In opposition to a 2009 state law limiting the Santa Clara
Valley Water District Board of Directors to five district
representatives and two elected members overlapping geographical
boundaries, the body is now considering creating seven electoral
districts with equal population.
MORGAN HILL
In opposition to a 2009 state law limiting the Santa Clara Valley Water District Board of Directors to five district representatives and two elected members overlapping geographical boundaries, the body is now considering creating seven electoral districts with equal population.
The board met with the Morgan Hill community Wednesday night at the Community and Cultural Center to explain the proposal and receive public input.
Currently the district is composed of seven members. Five are elected from geographical areas which coincide with the Santa Clara County supervisorial districts and two at-large members are appointed by county supervisors.
“It just doesn’t make sense,” said at-large Santa Clara Valley Water District Director Sig Sanchez, who represents South County. “We could consider seven equal districts county wide or keep the five elected as they are and the other two would run at large, meaning their districts would overlap the other five districts, but the board is leaning toward the seven equal districts,” he added.
“The benefit would be that the districts would be smaller and each board member would have less constituents to represent,” Sanchez said.
The board’s legislative counsel drafted the new proposal after a recommendation from directors who were dissatisfied with the newly adopted state law that will take effect Jan. 1 of next year.
Water District Director Rosemary Kamei said the new proposal will specifically give South County more representation, which has been hindered in years past. “For a long time, the South County district was Los Gatos, Morgan Hill and areas of San Jose like Almaden, Silver Creek and Evergreen,” she said. “It’s a huge district. The new districts will be smaller and the South County will get much more representation.”
