Imperial Irrigation District elections may shift board majority at critical juncture

Three seats are up for grabs on the powerful but fractious Imperial Irrigation District’s five-person board of directors on June 7. IID holds among the oldest and by far the largest rights to water from the vast Colorado River system that serves nearly 40 million people. Its reservoirs have dwindled to unprecedented lows due to historic drought and climate change.

IID is considered the most influential public agency in the Imperial Valley, and while lesser known than water agencies in Los Angeles, Phoenix, San Diego or other urban areas, it is a major player in the future of water in the southwest. IID also provides electricity for Imperial County and portions of the eastern Coachella Valley in Riverside County.

In recent years, board meetings have sometimes devolved into marathons marked by policy divisions and personal attacks. From electricity rate hikes last summer to who should benefit from lithium development on IID lands, other issues are in play besides grappling with the drastic declines of the Colorado River system. That is a major concern, though, with the district wrestling with how to rein in projected overruns of water to be used by valley farmers this year, and how to balance its historic needs with new industry.

Other key decisions facing the board include whether eminent domain should be used, possibly for the first time in the utility’s 111-year history, to take strips of land from farmers for major upgrades to the 18-mile-long S Line. That line serves as the primary transmission path for Imperial County sub-stations, and for imports and exports between the county and other parts of California and Arizona.

The S Line project would replace an existing 293 wood poles with 184 new steel poles, and increase IID's ability to connect to new solar and other energy projects built in its service territory. While construction has begun, the district still has not obtained the necessary easements from more than a dozen farmers.

Another longstanding issue is whether Riverside County electric customers should have elected representation on the board. Candidates in the Northend — the northeast end of the county, including Calipatria and Niland — are also concerned about steep price hikes from Golden State Water Co., which buys and treats water supply from IID to serve those cities.

With two candidates apiece in Division 1 and Division 5, whoever wins Tuesday will take office in December. In Division 3, with four candidates battling it out, unless a candidate receives more than 50% of the vote, the top two vote-getters will face each in a November runoff.

Current Division 2 director JB Hamby and Division 4 director Javier Gonzalez are midway through their four-year terms, and have regularly sparred with the existing three-member majority. In an extraordinary move, the current majority voted last month to censure Gonzalez for what they said were inaccurate Facebook posts.

The balance could shift, though, depending on whether incumbents or challengers  prevail in Divisions 1 and 5, and who triumphs in District 3.

Here are snapshots of each of the candidates by division.

Division 1: Andrew Arevalo challenges Alex Cardenas

Division 1 covers much of El Centro, Westmorland and southwestern edge of the Salton Sea.

Andrew Arevalo, 32, of El Centro, is a Corfman Middle School teacher and an El Centro Elementary School board trustee who helps train teachers across Imperial County. Like all the candidates, he was born and raised in the county, and like some, his family has ties stretching back decades at IID. His grandfather, a Mexican immigrant, started out as a laborer in IID canals and ditches and retired as a foreman.

“I understand the gravity of what's at risk, especially with another historic drought along the Colorado River,” said Arevalo.

He said he would fight to defend the valley’s water rights, “perfected by the U.S. Supreme Court … first in time, first in right,” but acknowledged tough negotiations lie ahead, with federal officials possibly eyeing opening up decades-old compacts.

Beyond that, he said he wants to restore community "trust and faith” in the board. He said he was dismayed to hear how working poor people's electric bills were raised sharply last year, and how they were told nothing could be done except to use a payment plan.

“Bad decisions are being made by leaders there. This creates an inherent threat to our entire way of life here,” he said.

Arevalo said that although he is a union member himself, he opposed blanket labor agreements IID signed in recent years, which guarantee the district's development projects will employ unionized electric and construction workers.  He said he had heard from contractors and other business people who said they could not afford to pay higher wages, and also is concerned union workers from outside the county might displace nonunion workers in the Imperial Valley.

Arevalo, who is endorsed by the Imperial County Farm Bureau, said he has not made up his mind about whether eminent domain might be needed to obtain parcels for the S-line. He said while the addition was important, some farmers did not think they were being heard. "I pride myself on communication and being accessible," he said, and would work to try to resolve the impasse “in a timely manner.”

He said he would need to know more before deciding whether Riverside County customers should be able to vote in IID elections.

Arevalo said he could juggle being a full-time teacher and other duties with being an IID director. “Do those meetings need to last 8,10 hours?” he said. “Part of it is the fact that … you have a board that is constantly fighting, constantly making attacks toward one another.”

He said if elected he would work to restore consensus and respect all fellow directors.

Incumbent Alex Cardenas, 50, also of El Centro, is seeking his second four-year term on the board. In addition to IID duties, he is executive director for Court Appointed Special Advocates of Imperial County, or CASA, working with advocates for abused and neglected children in court.

Along with fellow incumbent Norma Sierra Galindo and retiring chair Jim Hanks, he has consistently been part of the majority on the current board. He faults the other two directors, who are both halfway through their first terms and not up for election, for any rancor. "I am open and have always been open to anything with dialogue," he said.

He said voters should stick with experienced veterans rather than newcomers at a critical time.

"We kept the lights on and the water flowing during one of the most horrific pandemics, and we kept our employees as safe as we could," he said. An exciting period lies ahead, he said, with great opportunities for the Imperial Valley and IID to be a leader in renewable energy via lithium extraction and geothermal expansion.

Cardenas said the board successfully adopted a $1 billion-plus budget with over $300 million in capital projects. He said the Project Labor Agreements signed by the district actually require local workers to be hired from within its service territory, and guarantee them equity in compensation and benefits.

As for rate hikes, he said IID had to pay sky-high prices for power imports last summer, after the California Independent System Operator did not provide promised supply. He noted $6 million in assistance had been given to qualified senior citizens and lower-income customers. He also said customers' electric bills had dropped significantly this May and June, unlike for ratepayers of other utilities.

"These are very volatile times for energy, and one of main reasons for my running is to ensure customers have some of the most affordable, reasonable rates in the country," he said. "This is where the experience and wisdom of being seasoned policymakers comes into play."

Noting the district has spent millions of dollars successfully fighting lawsuits by farmers and others seeking to wrest away IID’s water rights, he said he was open to possible financial or infrastructure agreements in exchange for some of its supply, but would never surrender any legal rights. He thinks his opponent appears willing to negotiate away some of those rights.

Cardenas said he would “absolutely not support" elected representation for Riverside County ratepayers, because it "would disenfranchise Imperial County voters who have fiduciary responsibility for the district," but does support the existing Energy Consumers Advisory Committee, a 20-member body, with half of its appointees from Riverside County and half from Imperial County, that "provides advice and recommendations" to the IID board on fiscal, strategic planning, and policy matters that affect energy.

Division 3: Four newcomers seek to fill seat being vacated by Jim Hanks

Division 3 includes Brawley, Niland, Calipatria and the southeastern edge of the Salton Sea.

With longtime director and current board chair Jim Hanks stepping down, four challengers are vying to replace him to represent communities of the Northend, among the poorest in the county, but which holds vast reserves of lithium, which is used in electric vehicles and smartphones.

Don Campbell, 68, from Brawley, did not respond to emails and a phone call from The Desert Sun. According to online candidate statements, he is retiring from his longtime post as IID’s fleet services superintendent, after working at the utility for 47 years. He said his knowledge of all aspects of IID means he has "the experience and leadership to work with the IID team for a brighter and ​​​​more secure future.” He added that, “as a full-time director, “my focus will be in helping to move the IID forward in a positive manner” while meeting all state regulations and water and infrastructure needs.

Ramon Castro, 43, a Brawley city councilmember, owns a small electric and construction permitting company. A U.S. Marine Corps veteran, he is best known for walking from San Diego to Brownsville last year to bring attention to the plight of fellow military veterans being deported to Mexico.

When he returned from that walk last August, he said, he found a $650 electric bill from IID, which had decided it needed to raise its rates to cover costs of buying power from out-of-state providers.

"There's a real disconnect between what's happening in our communities and the board," he said. "There's no long-term vision long term. ... We are one of the poorest communities in the nation, and every dollar, every bit of income matters."

He began researching district policies, and learned residents in Calipatria and Niland, two of the county’s most impoverished communities, are also paying huge water bills because of a decades-long contract between Calipatria and the private Golden State Water Co., with IID selling wholesale water to the company for about $20 an acre-foot, which he said treats it and sells it for about $2,100 per acre-foot, with steep price hikes also announced for the next few years. He says IID should use eminent domain to take over the water district.

While it is Golden State that is jacking up prices, he says IID selling water to a company that charges such exorbitant fees "is like handing off a gun to a criminal who commits a murder, and saying 'I don't have anything to do with that.'"

As for the board meetings, he said "We all are passionate about certain issues, but we need to all be professionals ... and obviously we want to be friendly to each other, but serve the constituents, not special interests like lithium developers, Coachella developers and others."

He thinks the bulk of any revenue from the extraction of lithium should stay in the Northend, where the industry will be located, and be used to help lower water and electric rates for all customers countywide. He doesn't understand why IID sold some of its land for $500 to a would-be lithium and geothermal development company, although he agrees the district was right to preserve underground royalties.

Castro said he would avoid any private meals or meetings with potential developers, conducting all business in public.

As for Colorado River water, he said if certain parties want to negotiate payments to sell excess water, that was fine, but IID should "absolutely fight for every drop of water" to which it holds perfected rights, including legal action, if federal authorities try to take any.

Castro said while efforts by Riverside County officials to force representation on the IID board are "ridiculous," he would possibly support an approach that director Hamby has been "working on arduously" to possibly create a sub-body that would oversee Coachella Valley electricity provided by IID.

Gina Young Dockstader, 49, of Calipatria, is a fourth-generation Imperial Valley farmer who with her husband owns several related businesses, including about 1,035 acres of organic fruit and date farms, 3,000 acres of hay and feed products, and related packing, compressing and trucking companies.

She has the least experience as a public official, but has significant built-in support as a well-known agribusiness owner who has been endorsed by the Farm Bureau.

Dockstader's great-grandfather William Young served on the IID board from 1933 to 1940, representing the same division.  

"I'm running because I live here and I care," she said. "And I'm a Northend  girl. ... I've just been overwhelmed by the community support that I have received."

Dockstader said she has four priorities:

• maintaining reasonable energy rates while upgrading infrastructure

• ensuring water rights and adequate volumes of water for all valley users

• holding state officials accountable for the Salton Sea's decline and getting them to continue funding health-based incentives, including for clean air, and

• implementing a succession plan for key staff positions at the utility, with several people seeking to retire just as the district grapples with challenging issues.

Although she is part of the Imperial Valley's agricultural dynasty, she said "all residents of IID’s water service area need this security, not just the agricultural community.  Without that security of an adequate water supply, the need for industrial growth, especially the rare mineral development to include lithium will not happen."

Dockstader said she understands the desire of some of the candidates to keep most of the revenue that might come from lithium production in the Northend, but she says to be fair, any royalties IID earns need to be shared district-wide. She does hope a community benefit fund can be set up to help impoverished areas, and would like lithium revenues to be used for education and jobs, to keep young people in the county.

Dockstader agrees something must be done about Golden State Water Co., but said "I am not sure in what capacity IID would be able to help," since it could not sell potable water to those communities. She also said she does not favor voting rights for IID's Riverside County electric customers, because IID is primarily a water company.

She is not endorsing or campaigning with any of the other challengers or the incumbents, because "If I get elected I want to come in fresh, I want to come in friendly, and I want to work with everybody."

Maria Nava-Froelich, 59, grew up in Niland, lives in Calipatria, and for years has provided services to hundreds of schoolchildren and their families as head of the Family Services Center, including vision care, dental care and clothing.

As current mayor pro tem of Calipatria, she has spoken out forcefully on the need for the county’s struggling Northend communities to receive at least a third of any royalties or fees from lithium extraction and development at the south end of the Salton Sea, which lies in the division 3 boundaries.

"We want our fair share," she said. "Calipatria and Niland have been the stepchildren of the county for too long, and I say no more."

She said Calipatria has received revenue from the existing geothermal power plants along the south end of the Salton Sea for its four schools, but has been "given crumbs" by developers of solar farms and other projects, with property taxes and fees instead going to county coffers.

Nava-Froelich said there are "lots of other issues happening with water and power...and I want the IID board to remain in control of water rights and its energy authority."

She said as a member of the Local Agency Formation Commission, "we've already dealt with the Coachella Valley wanting to participate on the board. I strongly oppose that."

She also wants to extricate Calipatria and Niland from what she decries as the exorbitant contract with Golden State Water District Co., and either have IID or Calipatria build or refurbish the city’s aging water treatment plant, and provide affordable supply and service to area residents.

Division 5: Karin Eugenio challenges Norma Sierra Galindo

Division 5 includes Imperial, Holtville and parts of Calexico and eastern Imperial County.

Winner takes all in this two-person race, where incumbent director and longtime Calexico High School teacher Norma Sierra Galindo is facing challenger Karin Eugenio, 47, immediate past mayor and current city council member in Imperial.

Eugenio, whose Imperial City Council term is expiring, also works for the nonprofit Anza Borrego Foundation, teaches at Imperial Valley College and San Diego State University, and is earning her doctorate in education. Like Arevalo and Dockstader, she’s been endorsed by the county Farm Bureau, but all say they are running independently.

She said she is running because the division deserves a director who will devote the necessary time to the post. Sierra Galindo missed 12 meetings and only attended part of another six between January and Oct. 19, 2021, according to published reports of attendance data. Eugenio said if necessary she would step back from teaching and other duties to devote the proper amount of time to IID.

"We need active representation, need to keep our rates low and keep our water here," she said. "I think it's time that the IID does have a radical shift in leadership, and that's because of a lack of diplomacy, a lack of active representation and an abundance of special interests."

Asked about her attendance record at IID meetings, Sierra Galindo said as a high school teacher during COVID, he first priority was her students, and that no policy decisions were made in her absence.

Euginio said that devotion to students was honorable, "but we need representation"  on "what is arguably the most important body in the county."

Imperial is a fast-growing, middle-class community of law enforcement and other professionals, she notes, with per capita income far above the county's average. She says she and other Imperial officials have taken control of a portion of Route 86 from Caltrans and drawn up blueprints for its proper expansion, including bike lanes and other features, among other accomplishments. Eugenio said she would bring the same dedication to an IID position.

Eugenio's father worked in agriculture, and her brother, who works for the county agricultural commission, still leases land to farmers. She has also been endorsed by the county Farm Bureau, as well as the U.S. Border Patrol's local union and the Imperial City Council.

Top of the list for her is preserving the valley's historic Colorado River water rights, of which 97% is used by farmers "who provide substantial sustenance for the whole country, and which she said are "under constant threat."

"Keeping our water here is a huge priority, making sure we don't have any further water transfers," she said. "We need someone who values our agricultural industry, we need someone there to fight for us on a consistent basis, someone that will show up and be present."

Another key priority is proper oversight of lithium extraction on IID lands, she said, including fighting for underserved communities that did not benefit from solar developments and have suffered from declining air quality as the Salton Sea has dried up due to previous water transfers to urban areas.

As for the divided meetings, she said: "Diplomacy is not, in my opinion, anything to overlook. You can't get anything done without it."

Sierra Galindo, 70, of Holtville, is part of the current board majority that successfully fended off a lawsuit led by some members of the Abatti farming family, which could have shifted water rights from the district to a few hundred wealthy landowners. She said she believes her opponent and the other two candidates endorsed by the Farm Bureau, Dockstader and Arevalo, have the interests of farmers at heart, and not the whole county.

"I am seeking another term because there has not been such a precarious predicament that the board has faced as we're facing now, in terms of the special interests that want to privatize the water and obviously sell it for profit, and then secondly to continue to preserve our own independent authority ... to produce and deliver our own power."

She has served two and half terms, since 2013. She defends her spotty board attendance by saying as a schoolteacher at Calexico High School during COVID, her top priority was working with her students in the pre-nursing program. It was impossible to get substitute teachers to fill in during the pandemic, she said. She said she hadn't tallied her absences, but "no policy was passed or undone with me being absent."

She said she's proud of several accomplishments, including "surviving (directors) Hamby and Gonzalez without getting an ulcer," saying they regularly stalked out of meetings when they didn't get their way. Hamby and Gonzalez, for their part, have also frequently criticized the board majority, including her.

She also is proud that the U.S. Supreme Court declined last year to hear an appeal by a group of Imperial County farmers, led by Mike and Jimmy Abatti, seeking control of water rights. Noting the Abattis have close ties to the county Farm Bureau, she said she still believes, based on their endorsements, that a group of growers want to "bifurcate the district, to create their own water district," to maximize profits and possibly gain direct royalties from lithium extraction.

She said her father was a Mexican-American farm laborer who sometimes worked three shifts in a row to earn a pittance, and she would defend the rights of all IID ratepayers, not just those with "a plantation mentality."

Sierra Galindo said it was she who first persuaded Gavin Newsom to visit the Salton Sea — when he was lieutenant governor — to see the dust and air pollution, which is now paying off. She said Newsom is now trying hard to allocate funds to creating a smaller, sustainable sea that will benefit area residents.

As for the S Line, she said some farmers were resisting out of greed. Acknowledging the difficulty of obtaining four board votes to approve eminent domain, she said the board is exploring other options, which she declined to discuss.

As for the idea of Coachella Valley customers having elected board representation, she said, "never....absolutely not." She does not support a sub-board either. "I don't want the camel's nose in the tent," she said.

She's also part of a board majority that has awarded large contracts to politically connected companies, but says those companies have deep experience here and elsewhere, and provide valuable services for the district and good local jobs.

As for the complaints by opponents about the rancor on the board, Sierra Galindo responds bluntly and cheerfully.

“My job is not to sip tea and wear pearls with Karin Eugenio or go golfing with (Division 2 director) Hamby,” she said. "My job is to represent all the ratepayers fairly and preserve our rights."

Janet Wilson is senior environment reporter for The Desert Sun, and co-authors USA Today's Climate Point newsletter. She can be reached at jwilson@gannett.com or @janetwilson66 on Twitter 

This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Imperial Irrigation District election: Candidate profiles