"It created such a stink, I stopped payment on it . . . "
-- DSWSC general manager Greg Perrin
Send your comments and questions to roundup.editor@gmail.com, to Dr. Jernigan at 512.847.8567 (no email address available on the HTGCD website), to DSWSC at Angie@drippingspringswater.com, 512.858.7897 (no emails or phone available for board members on their website), to Mr. Skipton at jimmyskipton@gmail.com, or click on the "comments" at the bottom of the post
By Bob Ochoa
RoundUp Editor
A $2,500 contribution made by the Dripping Springs Water Supply Corporation for a film project at the request of a member of the board of the Hays Trinity Groundwater Conservation District has been raising some eyebrows and questions of conflict of interest the past few weeks and will be a topic on the agenda at the next meeting of the groundwater district's board.
DSWSC is the largest water provider in Dripping Springs – a not-for-profit member-owned cooperative serving more than 1,400 residential and commercial customers.
RoundUp Editor
A $2,500 contribution made by the Dripping Springs Water Supply Corporation for a film project at the request of a member of the board of the Hays Trinity Groundwater Conservation District has been raising some eyebrows and questions of conflict of interest the past few weeks and will be a topic on the agenda at the next meeting of the groundwater district's board.
DSWSC is the largest water provider in Dripping Springs – a not-for-profit member-owned cooperative serving more than 1,400 residential and commercial customers.
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| HTGCD board members (l-r) Jernigan, Mark Key, Skipton |
The water supplier also has some important business pending before the groundwater district, including a contested groundwater pumping permit case and reportedly owes the district tens of thousands of dollars ($55,000 by one estimate plus late fees) in water connection fees in arrears.
In early April, according to sources, the groundwater district's District 5 representative from Wimberley, Joan Jernigan, arranged a meeting with DSWSC's general manager, Greg Perrin, and the water supply's board president Ron Kelly, to discuss a documentary film project and to introduce the film maker.
Soon after the meeting, a check from Dripping Water Supply was made out to the Austin Film Society c/o vcYES Productions in the amount of $2,500. Earlier this week, Perrin informed the RoundUp he had placed a stop payment on the check.
"It created such a stink, I stopped payment on it yesterday (Tuesday, May 8)," Perrin told the RoundUp. "It has been rescinded because everybody perceived it to be something evil. When it was given it was to help protect the aquifer . . . I thought it best to take it off the table and run it through the board (of DSWSC)."
Perrin said he has the discretion to approve contributions to community organizations and worthy causes without his board's approval but questions from new board members and the public caused him to reverse his decision. A donation of $1,000 from the water supply reportedly was made recently to the local YMCA, among other smaller donations.
In early April, according to sources, the groundwater district's District 5 representative from Wimberley, Joan Jernigan, arranged a meeting with DSWSC's general manager, Greg Perrin, and the water supply's board president Ron Kelly, to discuss a documentary film project and to introduce the film maker.
Soon after the meeting, a check from Dripping Water Supply was made out to the Austin Film Society c/o vcYES Productions in the amount of $2,500. Earlier this week, Perrin informed the RoundUp he had placed a stop payment on the check.
"It created such a stink, I stopped payment on it yesterday (Tuesday, May 8)," Perrin told the RoundUp. "It has been rescinded because everybody perceived it to be something evil. When it was given it was to help protect the aquifer . . . I thought it best to take it off the table and run it through the board (of DSWSC)."
Perrin said he has the discretion to approve contributions to community organizations and worthy causes without his board's approval but questions from new board members and the public caused him to reverse his decision. A donation of $1,000 from the water supply reportedly was made recently to the local YMCA, among other smaller donations.
Jernigan-Kelly-Perrin e-mails
In an email from Kelley to his general manager Perrin after their meeting with Jernigan, Kelly reminds Perrin "she's the one we met with in Wimberley. She's on the HTGWCD board." It was a forwarded message from Jernigan to Kelly. In her email, Jernigan informs Kelly an entity has completed its 501(3)(c) status. "Please make out your check to the Austin Film Society with a notation of vcYES . . . thank you so much for your contribution. We have a long way to go and are determined to have this ready for the legislative session in 2013."
Jernigan confirmed that she arranged for the meeting with Perrin and Kelly to discuss fundraising for a documentary film project intended to help educate the Legislature on the difficulties facing small water companies in the state.
Jernigan was first elected, by an overwhelming margin, to the board of the groundwater district in 2010, and says she will not seek re-election. As a successful grants writer and with her background in education, Jernigan became the board's chief liaison for educational projects.
She said local film maker Bob Currie had produced an educational film for the groundwater district and was interested in producing another film about the Texas drought and the issues that arose from it. "We do need some help from all the water companies if they want any recognition from the Legislature," Jernigan explained. "Water companies are in big trouble. I'm looking at this from another perspective."
Jernigan said, "When the board president (of DSWSC, Kelly) was at our (groundwater district) board meeting, I was telling him about this film and he mentioned, 'we'd probably like to make a donation.'"
Jernigan: 'No conflict as far as I'm concerned'
Asked if she thought the public might perceive the donation and her involvement as a conflict of interest – considering the important issues Dripping Water Supply has pending before the groundwater district – Jernigan said she does not believe so. "I know a lot more about Drippings Springs' problem because of my association. I will just not vote on anything coming up from Dripping Springs.
"There's not a conflict as far as I'm concerned. We want to make a film . . . and narrow it down to the (Hill Country) Region 9. We can't get to the Legislature in time for a statewide film. I go off the board in November and I am not running again so I do need to ask for donations from everybody. I'm getting paid the same as the groundwater (district) board pays me which is nothing."
HTGCD board president Jimmy Skipton said he first learned about the donation at Dripping Water Supply's annual meeting late last month. Skipton is a member of the water supply and regularly attends its board meetings.
Skipton explained: "They put a presentation up on the screen where they donated money to different organizations and one was for $2,500 to vcYES and the board president (Kelly) said this was a film that was being produced by Joan Jernigan, a HTGCD member and it's for the groundwater district. I stood up and said I have no idea what you're talking about, the groundwater district is not doing a film. He (Kelly) said, no, it was just your board member who called us and asked us to sponsor it and we gave them the $2,500.
"In the meantime, I made some open records requests and realized there was not board approval (by the water supply for the donation), and since we are in negotiation with them at this time . . ."
Skipton: 'What was the urgency?'
At the Dripping Water Supply's Monday May 7 board meeting, speaking during public comments, Skipton asked the board how any other individual would go about getting $2,500 for their organization, "or were they playing favoritism with one of our board members. I was told by their lawyer there was no favoritism and never to make that claim. So I retracted and said it just looks goofy."
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| Skipton |
Skipton explained: "They put a presentation up on the screen where they donated money to different organizations and one was for $2,500 to vcYES and the board president (Kelly) said this was a film that was being produced by Joan Jernigan, a HTGCD member and it's for the groundwater district. I stood up and said I have no idea what you're talking about, the groundwater district is not doing a film. He (Kelly) said, no, it was just your board member who called us and asked us to sponsor it and we gave them the $2,500.
"In the meantime, I made some open records requests and realized there was not board approval (by the water supply for the donation), and since we are in negotiation with them at this time . . ."
Skipton: 'What was the urgency?'
At the Dripping Water Supply's Monday May 7 board meeting, speaking during public comments, Skipton asked the board how any other individual would go about getting $2,500 for their organization, "or were they playing favoritism with one of our board members. I was told by their lawyer there was no favoritism and never to make that claim. So I retracted and said it just looks goofy."
Skipton says he has no problem with the film project or the film maker, "he does great work. I just want to get to the bottom of it and see how it is the Dripping Springs Water Supply Corporation did not follow any of their past procedures for donating money, what was the sense of urgency that they needed to donate the money so quickly?"
Big groundwater issues
Dripping Springs Water Supply has a long-standing, long-delayed permit application pending before the Hays Trinity Groundwater Conservation District to pump groundwater from the Trinity Aquifer, the source for most of western Hays County residents. The water supplier was denied a requested 700-acre feet permit in 2007, filed a lawsuit and is now in sensitive negotiations with the groundwater district. DS Water has since upped its request for a permit to pump 1,600-acre feet (about 521.6 million gallons) annually from the aquifer, which Skipton believes is just not available to give.
Big groundwater issues
Dripping Springs Water Supply has a long-standing, long-delayed permit application pending before the Hays Trinity Groundwater Conservation District to pump groundwater from the Trinity Aquifer, the source for most of western Hays County residents. The water supplier was denied a requested 700-acre feet permit in 2007, filed a lawsuit and is now in sensitive negotiations with the groundwater district. DS Water has since upped its request for a permit to pump 1,600-acre feet (about 521.6 million gallons) annually from the aquifer, which Skipton believes is just not available to give.
Skipton said there will be more discussion about the Dripping Water Supply permit issues at the groundwater district's May 17 board meeting in Wimberley, as well as discussion of the circumstances surrounding the $2,500 donation.
33 comments:
OOOh, it look like LAW-DAWG Kelly got cought with his hand in cookie jar. Maybe he'll get a cell next to Doug Cones.
Hey Ron, inmates don't like "the Man" take short showers.
Joan Jernigan should resign from the HTGCD for no other reason than incompetence. DSWSC has not improved their ethics! That board tries every trick in the trade to thwart State law by even borrowing money from the USDA, so they will be exempt from Texas regulations.
Charles O'Dell, where are you now that we need you so much?
What happened at the last DSWSC? I heard that a board member stormed out and another cried?????
Ron Kelly's to do list:
1. Fire long standing manager
2. Hire my friend as manager
3. Offer all HTGCWD members gift bags
4. Take jewerly to ladies at city hall
5. Have Greg Perrin wash Ray Whisenant's car
6. Remind everyone that I worked for the FBI
7. Tell someone no, just because I can.
8. Remind everyone that I worked for the FBI
Anybody got an email list of DSWSC member? I'd love to send em a copy of this story. They have no a clue what's going on behind closed doors.
I do not like Dripping Springs Water Supply meetings.
First we have to salute Ron Kelly. Then anyone who speaks in public comment has to go through a TSA pat down.
Can a water board president really "cuff-n-stuff" you?
Who are the Duke boys, and why does Mr. Kelly want them arrested?
Madge Foster has all those cats on the table and keeps talking about Jack and the boat sinking.
I'm so confused......
Ron,
Thank you, thank you, thank you.
Will Conley
Wow this Ron Kelly is a piece of work.
Now Jon Cobb, son of County Judge Bert Cobb is on the DSWSC board.
What are the odds.
I was told by someone at the meeting that Kelly and crew were going to spend $290,000 on new water meters. Why?
Gee, I wonder why Ron Kelly would appoint the County Judge's son to the board.
At least we won't be forced to listen to Jon's calls to "fire Greg Ellis NOW" at the HTGCD meetings.
The $2,500 "donation" has the appearance of a bribe, whether it is or not. This "new board" has corrected many of the failings of the past 2 boards (Sellers' and Harris'), but they are breaking new ground in incompetence, ignorance and stupidity.
I heard 2 DSWSC board members (Shawn Connolly and Marge Foster) are also on the YMCA board, and that DSWSC gave the Y a $1,000 donation! As much as we support the Y, board members from 1 organization should not be making donations to other organizations where they serve on the board.
Kelly may be a former-FBI guy, but he is having trouble following the rules.
The FBI has rules? They do have friends and can and do what they want! Kick
I thought the previous board was bad!
Kelly should resign NOW!
Where is our district attorney?
Jernigan tells Kelly about a film project and Kelly says he might like to make a donation, this while at a board meeting of the ground water district! Outrageous. Solicitation. Have they no common sense, no decency? I would like to know what their respective board attorneys have to say about this blatantly unethical behavior. Dr. Jernigan, I believe you need to go back to study Board Ethics 101.
It is not Ms. Jernigan's business to be concerned about the condition of water companies. Her first and foremost role on the HTGCD is to protect and preserve the underground water resources in western hays county. This is shameful at the least.
Dr. Jernigan is working with only a partial deck, has been from the beginning of her time on the HTGCD, and sees herself as a great educator deserving of lots and lots and lots of respect.
I guess money donations are the new respect required from that lady.
This is outrageous and the HTGCD board really needs to rein that woman in before she gets them in real hot water as she goes off half-cocked on another one of her magical mystery tours.
Key, Skipton and Nesbitt thought they had the crazy lady in their pocket by saying "Yes Ma'am" and "No Ma'am" to her, like she likes so much, but they didn't expect her to go off the reservation like this, now did they?
This would be hilarious if it were not so damning.
Since when is it Jernigan's place to be making films for "small water companies"?
The aquifer, maybe, but "small water companies"?
Seems to me somebody may be looking for a new job.
Joan Jernigan is not an evil person; she is just old and a bit ditsy. It would be best for all if she would quietly resign before next Thursday's HTGCD meeting. I sincerely hope she doesn't try to defend her actions in public. The DSWSC on the other hand has some serious ethics problems like most Boards in this part of the world. Check out the WPOA and the Wimberley City Council sometime to see more fools at work.
No, Dr. Jernigan should not try to defend her indefensible actions and the parties she contracted with to make this movie should quietly retire into the woodwork.
Even if Jernigan is off-kilter and cannot tell wrong from right, surely all the other parties who went along with this cannot claim the same old crazy lady defense.
If Dr. Jernigan tries to convince the Board or the public that there was nothing amiss here, she should be officially censured and removed from office before she does any more HTGCD business using her odd logic and ethical standards.
This is a very unfortunate happenstance and it clearly indicates that there is the ability of HTGCD board members to enact financial dealings on their own, without any Board or public oversight.
Clearly a loophole that needs plugging. Rules Committee?
@dogonneit:
If Dr. Jernigan tries to convince the Board or the public that there was nothing amiss here, she should be officially censured and removed from office before she does any more HTGCD business using her odd logic and ethical standards.
First, you must be from Wimberley. You've gone off half-cocked just because you've read this story and you haven't bothered to verify anything. Why are you afraid of Dr. Jernigan having an opportunity to speak on the subject if she wishes?
Second, groundwater district board members are elected by the voters in their district - not by the whims of anonymous bloggers. GCD directors cannot be removed from office by recall or other such means. Jernigan can stand tall and she should certainly have an opportunity to address these insinuations.
Third, no doubt DSWSC would like to conflict her out of this vote. After all, Ron Kelly at DSWSC is trying to eliminate "no" votes. Anyone observing DSWSC meetings might opine that he doesn't play with a full deck much less a fair deck.
Kelly wants to grab up 1600 acre feet that he would be in control of. Obviously, he's also trying to get DSWSC's $120,000 debt to the HTGCD settled for $7500. Anyone attending DSWSC meetings could tell that Kelly and Foster have something up their sleeve - like trying to borrow close to $500,000 to combine with the money they would save by not paying the HTGCD connection fees. Marge Foster wants to open an "investment" account with DSWSC member money despite prohibitions in the DSWSC bylaws.
At the DSWSC meeting on May 7, 2012, the board placed numerous vague items on the agenda. Members could not tell what the items really related to. One was "long range planning for water services" which virtually anything could be lumped under. Kelly wanted to move all these vague agenda items to "executive session" where the members couldn't see or hear what they were talking about. When confronted point blank about how vague this was and how the board needed to disclose what they were talking about, Kelly said "that's my prerogative. I'll decide in executive session and tell you afterwards". After meeting for 3 hours in executive session, Kelly ended the meeting and refused to disclose what the board talked about. One can only imagine what they are really trying to borrow nearly $500,000 for.
Guilty or not or just plain clueless about ethical behavior as members of important public boards, the parties here should get a serious talking to like misbehaving children. At least the story is out. Kudos to the Hays County Roundup! Too much of this mischief is going on unseen and unreported.
Perrin said he has the discretion to approve contributions to community organizations and worthy causes without his board's approval
No offense to Perrin - that's probably what Ron Kelly and the DSWSC attorney told him to say. If Perrin had such authority, then why are other much smaller donations placed on the agenda for board approval?
Also, since director Marge Foster is the only one having authority to sign checks - it's pretty clear that Perrin does not in fact have authority to make such contributions. Director Marge Foster would have to "approve" at the very least by signing the checks.
What you really have here is Ron Kelly and Marge Foster continuing to try to control the board through smokescreens and mirrors. One board member already complained about Foster and Kelly using their "management committee" to thwart open meetings laws and the complaining board member called for the dissolution of the management committee. Marge Foster claimed that the committee had not met or done anything (which was not exactly true) and the comeback was something like "well if it isn't meeting or doing anything then no one will miss it". Foster's visible animosity towards the idea eliminating the "management committee" suggested that there was probably some truth to what the complaining board member said. Somewhere around this time Foster started declaring that the complaining board members shouldn't have a say because they weren't equal to Foster and Kelly. Go listen to the audio. Too bad they didn't have video of the meeting.
Kinda makes you wonder now what emails are flying between Kelly, Jernigan and Perrin? Game over.
This whole thing stinks to high heaven.
Where is the law when you really need them?
Seems to me Mr. Kelly was clearly buying "yes" votes and probably still has Jernigan's support.
I had not been paying attention to any of this and am so glad The Roundup brought the whole mess to public notice.
Has DS water supply been taken over by some people who took that new adage, Water is the new gold, to heart?
Big ideas and small minds.
Smaller sense of ethics and fair play.
I realize the filmmaker was not to blame in any of this, but I cannot help but wonder if he didn't sense something was not quite right about this funding mechanism.
A few questions remain; how do you stop payment on a check that was written a month ago? Where is the canceled check that they refuse to surrender. That Marge is truly a piece of work; where in Hell did they get her? That woman could start a fight in an empty room!
I'm starting to believe the rumors I hear about the DS area being populated by those in witness protection.
What a great way to bring Wimberley and DS together!
Unite to throw out corrupt board members.
Kudos to Skipton for his transparency. Kelly and Jernigan need to go.
I don't know if Skipton was being "transparent", but more like shocked (understandably) to hear that 1.) the HTGCD was making a movie about small water companie via the Austin Film Society, 2.)That a large donation had been solicited by Jernigan, 3.) Been already paid by a 'small water company' with a permit pending with the HTGCD, and 4.) That he knew nothing about any of it and found out as an audience member at a meeting where it wasn't even the main subject.
Transparent? No, appalled is more like it.
Jernigan's antics were despicable and now that she has gotten away with this, other members of the board can now feel free to do similar things.
This should have been a teaching moment, an opportunity to punish unethical behavior, but it will only serve to increase bad behavior and the transfer of money for political favors.
This is appalling. Just because she is an old woman, she does not deserve to be allowed to take bribes.
Recusing yourself later, after you have gotten your hand caught in the cookie jar, is not enough. This was bribery, pure and simple, and if this water board thinks what she did is okay, then it just means they have done or intend to do similar things.
Help us all, we are not in good hands.
Way I heard her explanation of her movie project was that it was simultaneously 'about the drought and our water supply" and "about small water companies and how they are in trouble". Seems to me, this is two very distinct subjects and she pitched it as 'about small water companies" in order to extract donations from a "small water company."
I can see her pitching this to each entity she approaches for donations as being about whatever they are about.
Good marketing. Bad politics.
Right. Joan Jernigan did exercise very poor judgment in taking a $2,500 donation to be used for an educational film from a member of the Board of DSWSC, which is in discussion (and, soon, possible litigation) with the HTGCD. She done wrong.
But I'm glad the Board of HTGCD had the empathy not to embarrass and make a public example of her. She did not enrich herself by taking and passing on a check made out to the Austin Film Society, whom she understood would be making an educational film that would explore water issues in Hays County.
I realize that her action in taking a check from the DSWSC Board member could look like bribery. I don't excuse Dr. Jernigan for her action, but I'm sure she learned from her mistake.
She is not running for re-election to HTGCD the next time around.
You are too kind to Joan Jernigan. She has a twisted sense of what her job as a board member is, and should never have been out soliciting money for this project. I do not know this, but I suspect that she prefaces all her dealings about water issues with the fact that she is an elected water official. She uses her office in the service of private interests. This is what I tend to see as Conflict of Interest, especially if she does end up making some money off this movie deal, which there is no evidence that she will not.
Jernigan is very "entrepreneurial" and I would not put it past her to have seen some profit potential in becoming involved in something she sees as timely.
Personally, I can see a real movie about Texas and our water situation as a prime subject for cinema.
What is going on in Texas is like our own version of that great movie about stealing water from one part of California to ship off to the other part: Chinatown.
This is exactly what some in this area are advocating: Piping water from where they do not live (or own property or care one wit about) and using that water to enable massive housing development into drier parts of the State. What does this do to the aquifers and the communities where the water is piped from? Who cares, apparently.
Clips from films about water.
http://waterfortheages.org/water-films/
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