The Calaveras County Water District Board of Directors called a special meeting on Thursday October 6, 2016, to discuss notification of Director Terry Strange’s applications with Calaveras County to cultivate cannabis.

The other four members of the Board expressed their strong disappointment at Director Strange’s failure to inform the Board of his cannabis related activities prior to disclosure by the press on September 29, 2016 – one day after the Board’s workshop on cannabis cultivation.

District General Counsel Matt Weber informed the Board that he has reviewed the issue of potential conflicts of interest and found there are no actual conflicts at this time. However, in an abundance of caution and to avoid even the appearance of a conflict of interest, Mr. Weber advised that Director Strange should recuse himself from any District business concerning cannabis cultivation or federal matters.

Director Strange expressed regret for not informing the Board earlier and said he will work to regain the trust of the Board. He offered to step down as Board president and to relinquish his position on the CCWD Legal Affairs Committee. The Board directed staff to place an item on the agenda at the next regularly scheduled Board meeting – Wednesday October 12, 2016 – to discuss how to proceed with the Board president position and committee assignments through the end of the year.

The District will make no further comments on these issues at this time.