After the Conejo Guardian reported on dramatic salary increases awarded to Calleguas Municipal Water District’s executives during drought years from 2020 forward, the five-member Board of Directors made a surprise move last month to delay a pay increase to current general manager (GM) Kristine McCaffrey. Instead, they awarded McCaffrey an $8,000 bonus after she had led the district for just eight months.
“We did just hire you [on Jan. 25, 2024], and that was one of the struggles we were contending with — is it time for an increase right now?” explained Jacque McMillan (representing Camarillo and Oxnard) at the board’s Aug. 7, 2024, meeting. “I think we want to wait until August of next year.”
The board then announced it was awarding McCaffrey an $8,000 bonus though she has served for just eight months. Comments from the board included, “Thank you for stepping up to the plate when we had a very quick transition. You’ve done a great job so far. Best of luck,” from Thibault Robert (representing Oxnard/Port Hueneme).
The Guardian asked Calleguas about giving bonuses to staff and why McCaffrey’s bonus was awarded after eight months of service. In response, Grant Burton, Manager of HR and Risk Management for the water district, wrote, “Per state statute and the Calleguas Administrative Code, the Calleguas Board of Directors has the sole discretion to adjust employee compensation. Consistent with her employment contract, at a board meeting on August 7, 2024, the General Manager’s job performance was rated as ‘Exceeds Expectations’ and based on this evaluation, she was awarded a bonus of $8,000.”
While Conejo Valley residents were asked to kill their lawns and conserve water during “unprecedented water shortages requiring severe cutbacks,” top Calleguas staff enjoyed large increases in pay and benefits, vaulting many above $300,000 and $400,000 annually. These pay increases came primarily out of customers’ pockets.
In April, the Guardian reported that while Conejo Valley residents were asked to kill their lawns and conserve water during what Calleguas called “unprecedented water shortages requiring severe cutbacks,” top Calleguas staff were enjoying large increases in pay and benefits, vaulting many above $300,000 and $400,000 annually. These pay increases came primarily out of customers’ pockets.
At the same time, Calleguas hired a communications consultant who was paid $119,784 from Jan. 2023 to Jan. 2024 to create “A campaign to inspire immediate action in drought” among customers in the water district. According to the consultant’s own website, “Calleguas engaged JPW Communications to develop a strategy to inspire swift, yet permanent, changes in customers’ water use in response to emergency water conservation requirements.”
Among the goals were to “Convince customers it was important to conserve water during this drought,” “Increase brand awareness for Calleguas within its service area,”
“Establish the agency as the region’s trusted water supplier and source of drought information” and “Tie into local community values that resonate to customers in southern Ventura County.”
Meanwhile, Calleguas raised employee pay broadly, especially for those on the higher rungs. Fully 62 of Calleguas’s 80 employees earn $100,000 or more, and during the drought years, Calleguas increased pay by an average of 22 percent for all employees.
Anthony Goff, a longtime Calleguas employee and recently retired general manager, saw his pay and benefits rise 57 percent in just four years to an estimated $483,750.
Robert Peters, Calleguas manager of operations and maintenance, saw a 71 percent increase in pay from 2019 to 2022, to $318,392 in pay and benefits.
Dan Smith, manager of administrative services, received a 25 percent increase, to $311,343, during that time period.
While Conejo Valley residents were asked to kill their lawns and conserve water during “unprecedented water shortages requiring severe cutbacks,” top Calleguas staff enjoyed large increases in pay and benefits, vaulting many above $300,000 and $400,000 annually. These pay increases came primarily out of customers’ pockets.
— Scott Quady, Calleguas board chairman to new general manager Kristine McCaffrey
Others saw increases of 42 percent, more than 55 percent, and, in multiple cases, 33 percent or more.
Chairman Scott Quady (representing Thousand Oaks/Newbury Park/Oak Park) responded then to the Conejo Guardian’s inquiry about GM salaries, saying, “Concerning our General Manager’s compensation, it is entirely consistent with the relevant market and matches that of neighboring water districts, both inside and outside of Ventura County.” Quady’s full letter can be found at conejoguardian.org.
The Calleguas board continues to stand by sky-high salaries for its top brass. McCaffrey’s annual pay and benefits is now around $450,000. Her current employment agreement can be viewed at conejoguardian.org. At the August meeting, Raul Avila (representing Simi Valley) praised McCaffrey, saying, “Great job. You’ve come a long way, and thank you.”
Andy Waters (representing Moorpark/Newbury Park/West Thousand Oaks) added, “Probably not very many people could be in your position this quickly and up to speed and kept everything together, kept all the nuts and bolts in there, and we greatly appreciate it.”
Quady concluded by saying, “I’m clearly a big fan of yours. I think you’re a very special GM and I’ve seen a few here. I think I couldn’t have expected a better broad, comprehensive address of so many of the issues and things that you’ve taken on in such a short time, so I just want to commend your performance. I think it’s wonderful and how good you are at what you do.”
But recently, Quady and other top executives have labeled water rate increases — which support lavish salaries at Calleguas — politically problematic and “unsustainable” because of potential backlash from consumers. Quady said in public comments to the Metropolitan Water District (MWD) Board on Mar. 12, 2024, that continued price hikes will lead to “rate protests” which “even when ultimately unsuccessful, have the effect of eroding trust in the institution seeking the increase. They can change the politics of the city or water agency, and often not in a good way.”
A follow-up memo from executives at Calleguas to their own board on Mar. 20, 2024, said that “Water rates are going up primarily due to historic low water sales coupled with high fixed costs recovered predominantly on variable revenue based on the sale of water. The use of reserves to fund operations to compensate for budget shortfalls over the last two years has depleted Metropolitan’s reserves. The current rate structure is unsustainable.”
Metropolitan Water District, also a public utility, supplies water to Calleguas. Metropolitan’s general manager, Adel Hagekhalil, makes $525,087 in annual pay and benefits.
Calleguas has five geographically elected directors overseeing the water district, three of whom are up for re-election this fall. The Board members are:
Board President, Scott Quady* (Division 2 – Thousand Oaks/Newbury Park/Oak Park)
Vice President Andy Waters* (Division 3 – Moorpark/Newbury Park/West Thousand Oaks)
Secretary Raul Avila* (Division 1 – Simi Valley)
Treasurer Jacque McMillan** (Division 5 – Oxnard/Camarillo)
Director Thibault Robert** (Division 4 – Oxnard/Port Hueneme)
*Division is up for election in November 2024.
**Division is up for election in November 2026.
