Barbre Knows Water.
Brett R. Barbre was elected to the Board of Directors of the Yorba Linda Water District from 1998 to 2000. In November 2000, he was elected to the Board of Directors of the Municipal Water District of Orange County (MWDOC), with nearly 70% of the votes cast. He was re-elected in November 2002 by a similar margin and was unanimously re-elected in 2006 and 2010 when nobody chose to run against him. In his final election of 2018, Barbre was re-elected with over 70% of the vote.
His primary goal in the water community is to ensure an adequate water supply for all of the needs in Orange County. He led the federal lobbying efforts to build a desalination plant in Dana Point and has actively pursued the approval and development of de-sal plants throughout southern California. He has utilized his expertise in lobbying on behalf of the MWDOC to help secure millions of dollars in local, state, and federal funds to build these projects and other water use efficiency projects to increase water reliability for Orange County and all of southern California.
In 2009, Barbre was appointed to the 38-member Board of Directors of the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California (MWD), which imports water from northern California via the State Water Project and from the Colorado River via the MWD owned/operated Colorado River Aqueduct. MWD delivers water to approximately 20 million residents and serves the largest population of any water district worldwide. He currently serves as a member of the Finance & Insurance Committee, Engineering & Operations Committee, the Communications & Legislation Committee, and the Audit & Ethics Committee.
He has been a champion of pension reform and led the efforts at both MWD and MWDOC to establish an irrevocable Other Post-Employment Benefits (OPEB) trust fund to pay down the benefits awarded in years past but were not funded. This means that future ratepayers will not have to pay for benefits awarded but not funded years earlier. He also championed the efforts for absolute transparency in providing web access for all compensation and expense records for Directors at MWDOC.
Because of his expertise and background on Southern California water issues, Barbre has been invited to testify before various Congressional Committees in Washington, DC. He also regularly comments on water issues on various local and national public policy radio and television programs.
From 2017 to 2022, Barbre served on the professional staff of the Yorba Linda Water District (YLWD), the premier water and sewer agency in North Orange County, serving as the Assistant General Manager and General Manager. YLWD serves the communities of Yorba Linda and portions of Placentia, Brea, Anaheim, and unincorporated Orange County.
Some of his accomplishments at the Yorba Linda Water District include the following:
YLWD began providing infrastructure tours and an annual Open House to showcase the $1.1 billion in YLWD assets for absolute transparency of operations and facilities for customers;
We implemented a new rate structure that will preserve the finances of the District and protect the ratepayers from increases when the state restricts water use;
Led the bargaining team to equalize benefits between “boots” and “suits” in a new 5- year agreement, which significantly increased morale;
Implemented strong fiscal policies, which resulted in higher credit ratings for YLWD;
Fire Hardened District facilities; installed strategically located permanent backup generators to mitigate exposure during power outages; installed two Heli-Hydrants in the wildland-urban interface area to provide fire-fighting helicopters with clean and limitless water for a quick refill during fires; constructed landing zone for fire-fighting helicopters.
Implemented the “YLWD Standard” for our facilities to better match the neighborhood in which they are located and hosted dedication and branding ceremonies for new projects and re-dedication of co-terminus facilities to recognize the history of the 110+-year-old District.
Kept YLWD facilities fully staffed through COVID.
Barbre Knows Baseball.
A diehard fan of the Boston Red Sox, Barbre can often be found traveling around “Red Sox Nation” to watch them play. He is a graduate of George Fox University in Newberg, Oregon. As a native of north Orange County, he attended and graduated from Glenknoll Elementary School, Bernardo Yorba Junior High School, and Esperanza High School. He has been a resident of Yorba Linda since 1969, where he currently resides with his wife, Jean. They have two grown daughters, Kimberly and Kathryn, two grandsons, and one granddaughter, who are already diehard Red Sox fans!