Board, Agenda & Minutes

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Long Beach Utilities Commissioners

(formerly Long Beach Board of Water Commissioners)

The City Charter entrusts the Board with significant responsibility and authority. The Board is charged with full jurisdiction over all water works necessary to the acquisition, treatment, sale, and distribution of water served to the City and is responsible for the collection and disposal of the City’s sanitary sewage.

Among other duties, the Board has authority to acquire or sell real property, to construct and operate facilities, to purchase equipment and enter into contracts. The Board establishes Long Beach Utilities' missions and goals, and adopts policies and strategies to meet these ends. The Board submits an annual budget to the City Council, fixes water and sewer rates, hires the General Manager and establishes compensation for all Long Beach Utilities employees.

In January 2023, Long Beach Water merged with the city’s natural gas utility, forming Long Beach Utilities and renaming the commission the Board of Utilities Commissioners.

The current President of the Board is Naomi Raney, who was elected by her fellow Board members in October 2023. Gina Rushing Maguire serves as Vice President and Kevin Scott serves as Secretary.

Board Meeting Times & Location

The Board of Utilities Commissioners meets on the first and third Thursday in each month at 9:00 a.m. at Long Beach Utilities’ Brennan S. Thomas Administration Building, 1800 East Wardlow Road, Long Beach, CA 90807

Agendas

Meeting agendas for the Board of Utilities Commissioners (formerly the Board of Water Commissioners) are available to view via the City’s Legistar page.

Standing Committees

The Board of Utilities Commissioners has also established the four standing committees. To view an upcoming agenda for any of the standing committees, please use the link above.

  • Finance Committee
  • Communications Committee
  • Government Affairs Committee
  • Infrastructure Committee

History of the Board

At its founding in 1911, the Long Beach Water Department was originally placed under the control of the Long Beach City Manager. In the subsequent years, the City of Long Beach continued to grow while its water supply became more unreliable. It eventually became apparent that independent oversight of the Water Department would be necessary.

The need for an independent Water Commission was brought to the city’s attention by two separate committees formed in 1930, a Citizens Water Committee and a Water Rights Committee. Each committee would be tasked with studying local water conditions and subsequently reporting their findings and recommendations.

Since 1931, the Long Beach Water Department was governed by a Board of five Water Commissioners, each appointed to a five-year term by the Mayor, subject to approval of the City Council. The overlapping terms of the Board members provide necessary continuity and bring to the Department the combined expertise of the members’ business and professional backgrounds. In addition to the five current Commissioners, 63 residents of the City have served as members of the Board. 

THE CITY CHARTER NOW READS:

“There is hereby created a Water Department which shall be under the exclusive jurisdiction and control of five commissioners who shall be known as the Board of Water Commissioners. Said Water Department shall have full and complete jurisdiction over all water works necessary and incidental to the use, sale and distribution of water owned and controlled by the City and all of the City’s sewer system.”

The first five residents named to the Water Commission were C. L. Heartwell, R. M. Dickinson, John Schinner, H. F. Ahlswede and J. W. V. Steele.

Water Department City Charter(PDF, 40KB)

Update

In November 2022, Long Beach voters approved a charter amendment to consolidate the city’s water, gas and sewer utilities into one Long Beach Utilities Department and renaming the commission as the Board of Utilities Commissioners. The structure of the Board remains the same.

Past Commissioners

 

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