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 MWCD Responds to Complaint Allegations According to several news reports, opponents of a proposal to levy an assessment on property owners in the Muskingum Watershed Conservancy District region have filed a complaint with the Ohio Supreme Court's Office of Disciplinary Counsel. According to these news reports, the complaint alleges that some of the judges of the 18-member MWCD Conservancy Court and their families received free lodging, meals and golf outings during the past three years at Atwood Lake Resort and Conference Center. "Unfortunately, these allegations have played a role in two judges stepping down from the MWCD Court," said John M. Hoopingarner, MWCD executive director/secretary. "The allegations of wrongdoing are without merit, but regrettably those opposed to the MWCD have decided to unfairly attack the judges who are providing a valuable public service." The MWCD was created in 1933 upon the petition of the people in the watershed region. Ohio Law provides for the organization and operation of the state's conservancy districts as political subdivisions. The law (Ohio Revised Code 6101) requires the organization of a Conservancy Court vested with specific powers and jurisdiction over each district. In the case of the MWCD, the law requires one common pleas court judge from each of the 18 counties of the district to serve as a member of the Court. The Court has original and exclusive jurisdiction coextensive with the boundaries and limits of the district. The law further states: "Each judge when sitting as a member of the Court shall receive such compensation and allowance for expenses as provided by law for a judge of the Court of Common Pleas serving by assignment outside the county wherein the judge resides, which shall be paid as other expenses of the organization or operation of the district are paid." All compensation of the judges of the MWCD Court is in compliance with this law. Pursuant to statute, the judges of the MWCD Court receive compensation in the amount of $50 per session, plus reimbursement for mileage, food and lodging while serving as a member of the Court. Traditionally, the MWCD Court meets only once annually, on the second Saturday in June. Prior to 2004, members of the Court were offered overnight lodging accommodations and the use of Atwood Lake Resort and Conference Center facilities on the night before the annual meeting, Hoopingarner said. In the past, several judges have chosen this option. This arrangement for lodging was in lieu of reimbursement for the expense of lodging and represented a cost efficiency for the MWCD, Hoopingarner said. As a convenience to those judges who opted to stay at Atwood Lake Resort and Conference Center, a buffet dinner was offered to any judge and the guests of any judge, he added. A continental breakfast was provided prior to the MWCD Court session at the Courthouse. "The provision of lodging and meals by MWCD to any judge of the MWCD Court was only done in connection with and directly related to the duties performed by each judge as a member of the Court," Hoopingarner said. "At no time did any judge ever receive complimentary accommodations or meals, other than in connection with the annual meetings of the MWCD Court." Atwood Lake Resort and Conference Center is owned by MWCD and is a part of its operations and responsibility. The operation of recreation facilities by the MWCD is specifically authorized by law and, as such, subject to the jurisdiction of the Court. Atwood Lake Resort and Conference Center is located at Atwood Lake, one of the 14 reservoirs owned by MWCD. Recreation opportunities at Atwood Lake Resort and Conference Center include golf, swimming, tennis and hiking. Additional public recreation facilities at Atwood Lake include a park, swimming beach, campground, vacation cabins, two full-service marinas and three public boat launch ramps. "The use of MWCD facilities at Atwood Lake by members of the MWCD Court in conjunction with the annual session of the Court afforded the judges the opportunity to visit, inspect, understand, question and critique the MWCD recreation program," Hoopingarner said. "By acquiring first-hand knowledge of these operations, the judges could better carry out the powers and duties of the Court, especially the responsibility for appointment of members of the MWCD Board of Directors and MWCD Board of Appraisers, methods of financing improvements and activities, and the examination of the annual report of operations of the MWCD." The recreation facilities of the MWCD historically have represented the most substantial part of all of the operations of this conservancy district. Financially, more than two-thirds of the revenue generated by the MWCD has come from its recreation facilities. Likewise, a significant amount of its expenditures are for the operation and maintenance of its public recreation facilities. MWCD has been a self-supporting political subdivision of the State of Ohio from its revenues generated through recreation facilities and stewardship of its natural resources since its inception. In 2004, MWCD entered into a management agreement with a third-party management company for the operation of Atwood Lake Resort and Conference Center, which eliminated any cost efficiencies for MWCD to provide the use of these facilities in connection with any MWCD Court session. Accordingly, MWCD no longer uses the facilities of Atwood Lake Resort and Conference Center for this purpose, but continues to pay for necessary expenses of the judges incurred when attending a Court session, including lodging, meals and mileage, Hoopingarner said. In 2005, the Court approved the Amendment to the Official Plan of MWCD, providing greater emphasis on the responsibilities of MWCD to maintain its facilities for flood reduction and water quality. With this action came a realization that MWCD could no longer remain "self-supporting" and would likely need to implement the power of assessment as provided in Ohio law to maintain its system of reservoirs. The complexity of implementation of an assessment would necessarily require increased activity of the MWCD Court in the exercise of the duties and responsibilities of the judges, Hoopingarner said. In February 2006, the MWCD Court reviewed the MWCD Board of Appraisers' report on benefits and methodology, and allowed the filing of the Conservancy Appraisal Record. With the filing of the Conservancy Appraisal Record, owners of property have the opportunity to file exceptions. Each exception must be considered by the Conservancy Court. Once these exceptions have been determined, the Court may confirm the Conservancy Appraisal Record that will allow the MWCD Board of Directors to levy the assessment. If MWCD levies a maintenance assessment as provided in Section 6101.53 of the Ohio Revised Code, the dollars generated may only be used as provided by law and cannot be used to fund recreation improvements. For more information about the MWCD and its plan of maintenance and improvements in the Muskingum River Basin, visit www.mwcd.org, or call the MWCD toll-free at (877) 363-8500. For more information, visit www.mwcd.org on the Internet or call the MWCD toll-free at (877) 363-8500.
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