Get to Know the CASA Team: Eric Sapirstein, President, ENS Resources, Inc
Eric Sapirstein serves as CASA’s Federal Legislative Advocate and has been a cornerstone of CASA’s team for decades. After holding leadership positions at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Washington-based consulting firms, Eric founded ENS Resources, Inc., in 1986. For more than 35 years, his firm has focused on legislative and regulatory advocacy, and strategic planning, supporting the policy interests of local and regional governments and national organizations that serve the public’s interests.  In this role, he leads a team of professionals schooled in water supply, water quality, infrastructure financing, transportation, alternative energy production, and ecosystem protection and restoration, and forestry health issues.

Prior to founding ENS, Eric served as an Associate with an association management-consulting firm where he helped established the Association of Metropolitan Water Agencies. He also worked on behalf of the National Association of Clean Water Agencies (formerly AMSA). In the area of public finance, he represented the Council of Pollution Control Financing Agencies, preserving the availability of pollution control bonds to support innovative financing of pollution control facilities. Eric enjoys decades of working closely with key congressional tax, infrastructure, natural resources and budget committees.

His decades of work with CASA to advance California water quality, water recycling and alternative energy issues has cogently presented CASA priorities to the California congressional delegation. Previously, Eric was responsible for developing USEPA’s solid and hazardous waste program budgets and represented the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency before Congress. He advised senior Agency officials on strategies related regulatory and policy issues regarding Superfund, solid waste management, and water programs. Mr. Sapirstein received two Special Achievement Awards, recognizing superior work that helped to ensure congressional passage of Superfund, the nation’s hazardous waste cleanup law.

Mr. Sapirstein earned a Master of Public Administration (MPA), with a concentration in public finance, budgeting, and urban administration, from The George Washington University. He was nominated and selected to compete as a Presidential Management Intern. He holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Political Science from Boston University.

Eric beyond the office:

  • Do you have a favorite travel destination or a place you’ve always wanted to visit?  Favorite destination is Africa where you can experience nature as it is meant to be.  And the place that I want (and will) visit is Ireland with its natural beauty, literary history and storied history.
  • If you could meet one historical figure, who would it be and why?  The Beatles because it would be amazing to learn how four guys were able to be as creative as they were and produce music that continues to withstand the test of time without being auto tuned.
  • Do you have a favorite piece of art or artist?  Monet. You can stare at any of his work and become entranced by his use of color.
  • If you could master any musical instrument overnight, which one would you choose?  Saxophone. John Coltrain, Stanely Turrentine, Clarence Clemmons, and Grace Kelly. They vividly demonstrate the instrument’s broad range of sounds.

 

Last Call! Join Your Peers at CASA’s Annual Conference
Wrap up summer with your colleagues in Monterey at CASA’s Annual Conference, July 31 – August 2, 2024. Set to take place at the Monterey Marriott, this year’s conference program offers an array of speakers and panels geared towards providing our agencies with the necessary tools and information to foster collaboration and achieve our common goals. Check out our program to see all the great speakers, panels, and presentations available during CASA’s 2024 Annual Conference. In addition to all the great sessions, we have some excellent networking opportunities this year! Check them out here.

Trust us, you won’t want to miss out on what we have in store. Our hotel block is sold out already, but we can assist with finding alternative hotels nearby, and it’s not too late to register! We hope to see you there.

 

Join the CASA Mentorship Program for the 2024-25 Session
We are excited to continue the CASA Mentoring Program through 2024-25 after another successful year. Join us as a mentor or mentee to inspire others, share knowledge, and drive change!

This 11-month comprehensive program, kicking off in October and concluding in August 2025, connects clean water professionals from across California. Partnering with Core Consulting, renowned for their experience in developing mentoring and training programs for public agencies, CASA will match mentor/mentee pairs based on their professional goals, preferences, and experience. The program is open to both associates and agency members. Interested in learning more? Join our virtual information sessions on:

Be sure to visit the CASA LEAD webpage! If you’re already interested in participating in this program for the upcoming year, please email Alyssa Downs so we can add you to our interest list.

 

CASA Annual Business Meeting and Election of Directors
CASA will hold its annual business meeting August 1-2 during the Annual Conference at the Monterey Marriot. During the meeting, members will be asked to elect a slate of four director positions to the CASA board of directors and approve the annual dues resolution. The nominees for the CASA Board are as follows:

  • Rita Duncan, Oro Loma Sanitary District
  • Georgean Vonheeder-Leopold, Dublin San Ramon Services District
  • Roland Williams, Castro Valley Sanitary District; and
  • Fauzia Rizvi, Western Municipal Water District

In addition, CASA is proposing a dues increase of approximately 3% for both agency members and associate members. Each year the CASA Board and staff work hard to try and make sure member dues remain reasonable while ensuring CASA has sufficient resources to continue to provide so many of the member services you all value. This increase will allow CASA to continue to deliver and expand services and advocacy on behalf of our members.

Emails to each agency’s designated representative were sent out with the President’s memorandum, dues resolution, and consent to electronic transmission forms. Representatives attending the conference may cast their votes up until 5 p.m. on Thursday, Aug. 1. Please contact Cheryl MacKelvie if you have any questions about this item, and thank you in advance for your participation!

 

CASA Annual Salary Survey Results
Thank you, CASA members, for responding to the Agency Salary and Benefits Survey Questionnaire. The survey provides valuable information for our members when conducting a salary classification and review. And thank you once again to Monterey One Water for coordinating and producing the survey report. Please find the summaries of the data from 28 participating agencies, here. Some important notes about the survey itself:

  1. The monthly salaries are base figures only.
  2. “Average” denotes arithmetic mean.
  3. The group salary summary sheets reflect the data as submitted.  However, in a few instances the position data was arranged so that job titles more closely matched the standardized titles and descriptions used by most agencies.  If two or more positions were included within one description, the lowest salary was used for the minimum and the highest salary was used for the maximum.
  4. All flat salary rates were considered to be both the minimum and the maximum for the classification.
  5. If hourly rate(s) for a position were listed, it was converted to a full-time, monthly salary equivalent.
  6. The attached six-year trend table for each position may be of assistance for spotting positions needing further salary review.
  7. Finally, we have tried to be as accurate as possible in entering and tabulating the information, we suggest that you closely review the data prior to use.

Once again thank you for your cooperation and assistance.