Cheryl MacKelvie

New Year, New Perspective As we forge ahead into 2021, it is important to take a moment and reflect on the tumultuous year we are leaving behind. To say that 2020 presented all of us with an unprecedented set of challenges would be an understatement. Fortunately there appear to be better days on the horizon. [...]

CASA Winter Conference: What’s Next in Washington D.C.? Join us on Thursday, January 28th during the CASA Winter Conference to hear from Radhika Fox, Chief Executive Officer with the US Water Alliance as she provides some insights on the future in Washington D.C.. Radhika is a widely recognized thought leader on complex water issues, from [...]

117th Congress Officially Begins The 117th Congress officially convened on Sunday, January 3 and a number of high-profile events are to take place in the first few weeks of the first session. After major upsets by the Democratic challengers in this week’s run-off Georgia Senate elections, the Senate will be split 50/50, with Vice President-Elect [...]

SWB Receives Update on Inaugural Volumetric Annual Reports of Wastewater and Recycled Water On January 5, during their first meeting of 2021, the State Water Resources Control Board (Board) heard an informational item on the results of the first annual volumetric reporting for wastewater and recycled water. The reports were due last summer following the Board’s [...]

In Memoriam It is with deep regret that we share that CASA Past President Raymond C. Miller, passed away on December 27, 2020. Before retiring, Ray was the general manager of South Coast Water District and executive director of the Southern California Alliance of POTWs. “Ray Miller’s passing was a bittersweet moment for me. Ray was [...]

President-Elect Joe Biden Selects Top Environmental Nominees After officially being declared President-Elect, following members of the Electoral College casting their votes for the Presidency on December 14, Joe Biden continues to make nominee selections for key environmental positions. This includes Michael Regan to be Administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), Brenda Mallory to [...]

Leadership Announces 2021 Policy Committee Assignments Last week Legislative Leadership announced the State Senate and Assembly policy and fiscal committee assignments for the upcoming 2021 Legislative Session. Leadership in Committees that our sector typical works with remained largely unchanged with a few noteworthy exceptions. Asm. Luz Rivas replaces Asm. Laura Friedman as chair of the [...]

APWA “Best Project of the Year” Award Congratulations to the Las Virgenes – Triunfo Joint Powers Authority for being awarded Best Project of the Year by the American Public Works Association (APWA) of Southern California for process air improvements at the Tapia Water Reclamation Facility. The project, completed in partnership with PACE Advanced Water Engineering, [...]

International Group Updates Flushability Specifications for Wipes “The International Water Services Flushability Group (IWSFG) has published an updated version of its flushability specifications. The original specifications were published in 2018 to provide a method for evaluating whether wipes and other products labeled “flushable” are safe for sewer systems. Problems caused by improperly flushed consumer products are experienced by clean [...]

CASA Winter Conference 2021: Let’s Talk Agency Finance It’s no secret that 2020 has thrown a wrench into many aspects of our lives. The state of municipal finance is no exception, and one which begs the question: Where do we go from here? Be sure to join us during CASA’s Virtual Winter Conference 2021 for [...]