President’s Message By: Larry Riccio

As you are reading this newsletter, Labor Day will have passed, parents will be counting the days until school opens, beach days will be relegated to weekends and fall fertilizer will soon be dropping on all our lawns. The time to begin budget preparations is certainly closer on the horizon and AEA has been busy planning fall conferences leading up to the Annual Conference in November.

Getting back to budget preparations, please note the recent legislation allowing municipalities to tap an Authority/MUA’s Unreserved Retained Earnings S 578 or C.57 PL 2004. We are working on scheduling a meeting with the Governor’s Policy staff to voice our concerns over the financial impact upon our customers and about the forced deferral of capital improvements that occur if funds are taken from authorities. Please read the two articles prepared by Stuart Neuhof the CFO of Stony Brook Regional SA for more information about the impact of this new legislation.

With the onset of GASBY 34 and CMOM our obligations to maintain the system increase dramatically as do our need to maintain adequate funds to meet these obligations.

We also have an obligation to stay current on laws and regulations and the association has an obligation to help us do just that. AEA has a Legal Conference scheduled for September 13th, a Security Conference on October 27th and a Permits Conference on November 4th. Details on each Conference are in the newsletter; please plan on attending one or more. AEA needs your support and attendance in order to continue sponsoring these sessions.

Association membership levels are always a concern; AEA’s ability to serve our membership depends greatly on our dues revenue. If your professionals are not members of AEA, then we need you to exhort them to join us. Their expertise and input on crucial regulatory issues and proposed legislation is vital to our success. Most likely their ability to advise you would be enhanced by their participation in AEA activities.

As always, conference topic suggestions and participation on a committee are always welcomed. Member participation is essential in the association’s efforts to provide services to the membership.

Remember to mark your calendars and attend our conferences and good luck with your budget preparations, maybe you could use a little of that fall fertilizer in your budget message!