DANA POINT : Water Board Votes Health Benefits Out

Capistrano Beach County Water District directors, urged on by a crowd packed into their tiny headquarters, voted this week to cut off their taxpayer-funded health benefits.

Directors of the 35-year-old district voted 3 to 2 Tuesday to end the benefits for any director with fewer than 12 years of service.

The benefits cost the district $126 a month for each board member, said William Meadows, district general manager.

Although the new district policy was the subject of much debate, it will actually affect only Bonnie Streeter, the sole new director accepting the package.

Kenny Lawrence, who has served on the board for 28 years, will continue to receive his benefits although he voted to end the district health package.

Meadows said the new policy still needs to be researched by the district attorney to see if benefits can be taken from a director who has been receiving them.

Director Addison DeBoi, who has led the charge to eliminate the benefits, made the motion for the new policy. He called the idea of directors receiving health benefits from the taxpayers “inappropriate.”

“Some of our customers don’t have health benefits at all and have had to pay water bills that have increased nearly 20% this year,” DeBoi said. “Most of those who do have (health benefits) contribute a portion of their paycheck to pay for them.”

Streeter and Hayton cast the dissenting votes. Hayton said he was originally on the district benefit package and paying his own way but has recently taken himself off the plan.

Hayton said he voted against the new policy because he believed it was “political posturing” by DeBoi.

“This whole thing was thoroughly staged. It’s really a non-issue,” Hayton said.

Streeter, who is self-employed, said she voted to keep the benefits because “they were offered to me from the beginning.”

“I thought it was interesting that Kenny Lawrence voted me out but didn’t volunteer to give up his benefits on his own,” Streeter said.