Water commission approves consent calendar and nominates officers for 2026'27; forwards Title 16 amendment

At its regular meeting, the Santa Barbara Water Commission handled routine business and several formal actions.

Consent calendar: The commission approved the consent calendar (approval of minutes, a water-usage update and a preconstruction-services contract for the Big Tracer reservoir replacement project). The chair called for public comment; none was reported. Staff announced the motion carried after roll call. A commissioner noted an abstention in advance of the call; the meeting record shows the motion carried with a majority present and one abstention noted.

Officer nominations: The commission moved and seconded nominations for 08/01/2026 through 07/31/2027 leadership: Dave Davis to serve as chair and Lindsay Cooney to serve as vice chair. Commissioners present nominated and approved the slate by voice vote.

Ordinance referral: Later in the meeting the commission voted to forward an ordinance amending Title 16 (industrial waste and pretreatment) to City Council for approval to enable electronic pretreatment reporting and CROMERR-compliant records. The motion to forward passed on the recorded roll call.

What to expect next: Staff will return with implementation details for the Energy Master Plan pilots and with municipal-code updates and administrative materials to support electronic pretreatment reporting after council review. No substantive policy decisions that would bind the commission's direction were adopted during this meeting; the actions move items to subsequent approval or implementation steps.