John Armstrong

Q. What is your opinion of the KPUD acquiring small water systems and if you do is there a different management philosophy applied to them?

“The KPUD has one standard of management for all of our systems that our water operations staff of 19.5 staff support. We do not differentiate between our 62 KPUD owned systems and the 147 that we manage for others. The KPUD owned systems serve 13,102 connections and our KPUD managed systems have 948 connections.  The District continues to look for efficiencies through new technologies and operational strategies. My policy is   to acquire water systems only at the request of the customers being served, as the receiver of last resort or at the request of the Department of Health.  I am not out to put owners of functioning water systems out of business. We are an organization that has and will respond to the needs of the public and to provide them safe drinking water.”

Q. The KPUD has been monitoring Kitsap’s aquifers for years and is considering a contract with the U. S. Geological Service to produce a model of our water recourses. What is your opinion of this proposal?

“As late as 1974 when the US Navy started the research and design phase of the Naval Submarine Base, Bangor (NAVSUBASE, Bangor) it was believed that the primary source of Kitsap County water was the Olympic Mountains and the runoff from its rivers. The joint efforts by the Federal, State and Local entities have come to prove that we obtain our potable water from our annual rainfall. The joint effort has been exceptionally successful in the pass and will prove to be in the future. As the former Director of Engineering and Station Resources Manager for SUBASE Bangor I firmly support the continuing joint efforts of the U.S. Geological Service, the KPUD and local Water Districts to create  the computer model of our is a smart idea.”

Q. Are there services, programs or budgeting efficiencies that the Kitsap

Public Utility District (KPUD) could add revise or eliminate to improve its

operations?

“The KPUD is providing for its citizens the programs and services permitted under the WAC. As issues and concerns that are brought to us by our voters and commercial establishments we look at the requests, the benefits, costs and the legal authorities to pursue new programs. We continuously review our present scope and range of our programs for improvements. The KPUD uses a cost benefit/analysis method of funding allocation.”

Q. What are the qualifications, experience and policies that you bring to the public for voter consideration?

“For the past eighteen years as Kitsap Public Utility District Commissioner for District I have dedicated myself to insure the people of Kitsap County to insure that we have sufficient water for our future needs. One of the Kitsap Public Utilities District primary functions is identify where we have water and how much of it is located there. The American Water Works Association (AWWA) has provided me with numerous study sessions on the topics of systems management, rate setting, district financing and budgeting. As the Vice-President of and a key member of the six-member Washington Public Utility District Association (WPUDA) team I worked with the leaders of the State Legislature and the Governor’s Office to pass the act permitting Public Utilities to provide wholesale Broadband Telecommunication services to Washington State.

In 2008, the AWWA awarded me the title of Certified Elected Water official and appointed me as the Northwest Member of the Public Officials Forum.  This is an international group of eleven public officials that meet to resolve common problems. I also hold Professional Licenses, from the State of California, as a Professional Engineer and Registered Engineer and have held Engineering and facilities Management positions for thirty-years.

Public Utility Districts are prohibited from providing retail telecommunication services to our citizens, commercial customers and other public agencies by Washington State Law. We have twelve Internet Service Providers (ISP’s) that provide the connection between our 109 mile fiber optic backbone and the retail customers. Our pricing for the “Wholesale Contracts” is based upon a postage stamp quantity rates. All of the ISP’s pay the same rate for the scope of the contract that they specify. Each year, as our resources allow, we extend our backbone further out. One must keep in mind that this extension is controlled by the availability of funds. We have submitted a proposal to Google to be included in their pilot area wide program. No word has come back as yet on our proposal. We have also submitted backbone extension projects for federal stimulus funding. We continue to work with our ISP customers and others to extend our backbone to the underserved areas of Kitsap County as permitted under the Law.