![\"Kern](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/kcwa-board-scaled-1-1.jpg\" "\\"Kern")
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Kern County Water Agency Board in October 2025. Left to right, Jay Kroeker, Laura Cattani, Marty Milobar, Gene Lundquist, Bill Wulff and Royce Fast. Director Tammy Johnson was appointed in Dec. 2025.<\/p>\n
Lois Henry<\/p>\n
SJV Water<\/p>\n
Serving on any board is typically a thankless job.<\/p>\n
But for directors of the Kern County Water Agency, there are perks.<\/p>\n
Directors are paid $325 per meeting \u2013 up to 10 meetings per month. That goes for any public meeting as long as they\u2019re attending on behalf of the agency.<\/p>\n
But that\u2019s not all.<\/p>\n
Directors can also receive medical, dental, vision, long-term care, life and travel insurance benefits through the agency.<\/p>\n
Medical benefit premiums are shared with the agency. Director contributions can range from zero to about $500 a month, depending on the plan and level of coverage, according to the agency<\/a>.<\/p>\n Premiums for dental, vision, long-term care, life and travel insurance are 100% covered by the agency.<\/p>\n Annual costs of those perks to the agency are $100,895 for meeting stipends; $76,178 for medical premiums for four of the seven directors; and a combined total of $17,945 for the other insurance categories.<\/p>\n Serving on the Kern County Water Agency is a very big job.<\/p>\n Orientation for new directors can take up to 40 or 50 hours<\/a>, according to Tammy Johnson who was appointed to the board in December 2025.<\/p>\n Directors have to keep tabs on complex issues from the state\u2019s Delta Conveyance Project to groundwater banking, water exchange contracts, drinking water treatment protocols and much more. They attend the main agency monthly board meetings, must be available for special meetings and each director also works with agency committees that delve into specific topic areas more deeply.<\/p>\n Plus they represent large, diverse chunks of the county and attend meetings of the water districts within those boundaries.<\/p>\n Still, director compensation at the Kern agency is significantly higher than local water districts, which typically pay directors $100 a day for meetings attended and have a set list of meetings that stipend can apply to. Some local districts do offer directors health benefits but not the larger insurance package offered by the Kern County Water Agency.<\/p>\n Even compared to other, comparably large and complex, water entities, Kern County Water Agency director perks stand out.<\/p>\n Directors at the Westlands Water District, for instance, may receive a stipend of $100 for each meeting attended with a cap of six meetings per month. Then can also elect to have the district pay $162 a month toward medical insurance and may enroll in the district\u2019s vision and dental plans, according to Westlands\u2019 spokesman Justin Mendes.<\/p>\n Directors at the Friant Water Authority, meanwhile, get $100 per meeting attended and no benefits. However, the authority is a joint powers agreement so its board is made up of directors from water districts that contract for Friant water. Many of those \u201chome\u201d districts typically do offer some form health benefits to their directors.<\/p>\n SJV Water is an independent, nonprofit news site covering water in the San Joaquin Valley, www.sjvwater.org. Email us at sjvwater@sjvwater.org<\/p>\n