Boards Select 2022 Chairs and Vice Chairs
On January 13, the San Joaquin Hills Transportation Corridor Agency (SJHTCA) and Foothill/Eastern Transportation Corridor Agency (F/ETCA) Boards of Directors held leadership elections for the current calendar year. The SJHTCA Board of Directors unanimously elected Newport Beach Councilmember Will O’Neill as Chair and Laguna Hills Mayor Pro Tempore Janine Heft as Vice Chair. The F/ETCA Board of Directors unanimously re-elected Yorba Linda Councilmember Peggy Huang as Chair and Dana Point Mayor Joe Muller as Vice Chair.
Director O’Neill succeeds Mission Viejo Councilmember Trish Kelley after two terms as Chair of the SJHTCA. Former Chairwoman Kelley and O’Neill worked as a team to oversee historic successes for the Agency that included navigating the COVID-19 pandemic and overseeing the successful reduction in debt service payments of $138.7 million, net of all transaction costs. without extending bond maturity dates. Chair O’Neill served as part of the leadership for the Agencies’ Joint Finance & Investment Committee that developed and garnered Board support for adoption of Debt Management Policies that have further strengthened the Agencies’ cash position while creating additional flexibility to pay down other bonds early or invest in key capital projects. Kelley will continue to serve as a Director for the SJHTCA.
Chair Huang continues in her leadership role for the F/ETCA Board after overseeing similar success with a bond refunding which resulted in saving of $214 million and positioned the Agency for a potential early pay down of $125 million in principle in 2022. She was also at the helm for opening the Oso Parkway Bridge to traffic and advancing the 241/91 Express Connector project. Huang is actively engaged in policy discussions at the regional and state levels and was recently named one of Orange County’s 125 top influencers by The Orange County Register.
Customer Service Center System Contract Amendment Approved
The SJHTCA and F/ETCA Boards of Directors unanimously approved an amendment to extend the Customer Service Center back-office system contract with BRiC-TPS. The contract’s amendment provides authorization for continued maintenance until the transition to the new customer service back-office system is in place. The transition is expected to occur in summer 2022.
