Current Election Notices
OCCOG Seeks 1 OC Rep for Santa Ana Watershed Project Authority (SAWPA) One Water One Watershed (OWOW) Steering Committee
Who may serve: Elected Officials in the cities of:
Anaheim
Buena Park
Costa Mesa
Cypress
Fountain Valley
Fullerton
Garden Grove
Huntington Beach
Irvine
La Habra
Lake Forest
Newport Beach
Orange
Santa Ana
Stanton
Tustin
Westminster
Villa Park
Yorba Linda
Length of Term: Term is 4 years from March 2025- March 2029
Meetings dates/times: 4th Thursday of odd months at 10:30 am
Stipend provided: None
Background
The Santa Ana Watershed Project Authority (SAWPA) was formed in 1968 as a joint power authority under California law, composed of five member agencies; Eastern Municipal Water District, Inland Empire Utilities Agency, Orange County Water District, San Bernardino Valley Municipal Water District, and Western Municipal Water District. SAWPA focuses on a broad range of water resource issues including water supply reliability, water quality improvement, recycled water, wastewater treatment, groundwater management, brine disposal, and integrated regional planning. Its stated mission is to develop and maintain regional plans, programs, and projects that will protect the Santa Ana River basin water resources to maximize beneficial uses within the watershed in an economically and environmentally responsible manner.
The purpose of the One Water One Watershed (OWOW) Program is to encourage integrated management of water resources and provide funding for multi-benefit projects that support watershed sustainability. OWOW is part of the California Department of Water Resources (DWR) Integrated Regional Water Management (IRWM) Program which promotes collaborative planning and water resources management. For more detailed information on the benefits of OWOW and the OWOW Plan, please reference information and documents on our website at: https://sawpa.org/owow/
Role of OWOW SC
The OWOW SC makes decisions about the OWOW program in an advisory role to the SAWPA Commission, which is the state-approved regional water management group. The OWOW SC includes elected, appointed, public, private and non-profit members from Orange, Riverside, and San Bernardino counties.
Structure of OWOW SC
The OWOW Governance Document sets forth the structure of the OWOW SC – which is comprised of eleven (11) members from Orange, Riverside and San Bernardino counties within the Santa Ana River Watershed regional planning area (Region). There are a total of three (3) “city representatives” – one mayor or city council member from a city within the Region in Orange, Riverside and San Bernardino counties selected by a majority vote of the Council of Governments in the respective county.
For reference, please see the attached packet.
If you are interested in serving please provide a letter of interest via email by 5 PM, Tuesday, April 1, 2025 to marnie@occog.com indicating the following:
Name
Jurisdiction
Term in office
Why you would like to serve
Qualifications/ Relevant Experience
SCAG REGIONAL COUNCIL/ OCCOG BOARD ODD DISTRICT REGULAR ELECTION
OCCOG provided a notice of election cancellation for District 13, 15, and 17 to City Managers and City Clerks of the following cities:
District 13 - Lake Forest, Laguna Hills, Laguna Woods, Mission Viejo, and Rancho Santa Margarita
District 15 - Costa Mesa, Fountain Valley, and Newport Beach
District 17 - Orange, Tustin, and Villa Park
After the candidate filing deadline, the Hon. Wendy Bucknum, Hon. Lauren Kleiman, and Hon. Jon Dumitru were re-elected as they were the only eligible candidates. Per SCAG bylaws and the SCAG Regional Council Policy Manual, if there is only one eligible candidate, that individual shall be declared the District Representative and no election will be required.
Please note: the RC District 13, 15, and 17 election scheduled for March 27, 2025, is now cancelled.
See below for a map of Orange County’s SCAG Districts and current District representatives/ OCCOG Board Members. For questions regarding elections please contact OCCOG Clerk of the Board, Kathryn Morrison kathryn@occog.com or 949.357.3342.
congratulations to newly-elected occog board members
Please welcome the following members to the OCCOG Board of Directors:
Debbie Baker, Councilmember City of La Palma, representing District 18 (term ends May 2026)
Ryan Balius, Councilmember City of Anaheim, District 19 (single city district serves until replaced)
William Go, Councilmember City of Irvine, District 14 (single city district serves until replaced)
Fred Jung, Mayor City of Fullerton representing District 21 (term ends May 2027)
Butch Twining, Councilmember City of Huntington Beach, District 64 (single city district serves until replaced)
OCCOG BOARD APPOINTS NEW SCAG POLICY COMMITTEE REPRESENTATIVES
Congratulations to the following Orange County elected officials selected by the OCCOG Board of Directors to represent Orange County on SCAG policy committees:
Peggy Huang, Councilmember City of Yorba Linda, CEHD
Patty Senecal, Councilmember City of Seal Beach, EEC
Zhen Wu, Councilmember City of San Clemente, Transportation
SCAG Policy committee representatives may serve until they leave office or step down from the position.