A no-work job

One of the most interesting questions about the Clean Water Coalition is this: Why does this agency -- which has been in a slow-motion shutdown for months -- even exist?

It was formed in 2002 by the Clark County Water Reclamation District and the cities of Henderson, North Las Vegas and Las Vegas after an algae bloom was spotted in Lake Mead. It was thought at the time that phosphorus used to treat wastewater was responsible.

Officials believed the solution was an $860 million pipeline that would carry treated wastewater to near the bottom of Lake Mead.

But instead of tasking an existing government agency -- say, the Water Reclamation District -- with the job, officials decided an entirely new agency was needed, and the coalition was born.

It was overseen for a time by then-Clark County Commissioner Chip Maxfield, who opted not to seek re-election back in 2008. In February 2009, out of office just two months, Maxfield was hired out of a field of very qualified candidates to become the coalition's general manager, at a salary that topped out at $161,000, plus benefits. That was paid by residents and businesses through a fee tacked onto their water and sewer bills.

Sadly for Maxfield, his agency crumbled. Improvements in treating wastewater resulted in cleaner discharges. The economy tanked. And by Dec. 8, 2009 -- on the job just 10 months -- Maxfield got the bad news: The cities of Las Vegas, Henderson and North Las Vegas decided to scrap the project, return the money and, well, "reexamine the role of the Clean Water Coalition."

But did Maxfield and his handful of employees clean out their desks and move on, perhaps back to gainful employment in the private sector?

Nope. In fact, Maxfield and his administrative assistant are still on the job as you read this. He's still making those big bucks, even though they literally sold the coalition's office furniture right out from under him.

In fact, the audacious Maxfield didn't let a little thing like the fact his agency no longer had a need to exist stop him. My colleague George Knapp of 8NewsNow's I-Team reported that Maxfield tried to negotiate a pay-and-benefits package for Clean Water Coalition employees in 2010 that was beyond lucrative.

That's 2010, after he'd been told the pipeline project was dead.

For all the grief public employees such as firefighters, cops and teachers have received in the past few years, at least they do something for their money. Maxfield has known his job was essentially over since Dec. 8, 2009, but apparently "closing down a public agency" is now a full-time gig. And a very lucrative and long-lasting one, too.

So what's the holdup? Why has Maxfield drawn a salary for a job that was deemed unnecessary for the past 18 months, and why will he continue to do so for the foreseeable future?

Just as it took the agreement of three cities and the reclamation district to form the agency back in 2002, it apparently also requires unanimous consent to dissolve it. And North Las Vegas is currently locked in a dispute with Clark County over the issue of discharging treated wastewater into a flood control channel without the county's permission. Its representative on the Clean Water Coalition board -- Councilman Robert Eliason -- has held things up. According to the Review-Journal's Henry Brean, the city will vote to keep the coalition alive until it resolves its fight with the county. And since that fight is now in federal court, well, that could be awhile.

What happy news for Maxfield, who candidly admitted there's little work left to do. "We can move the five paper clips and two computers over there until the board approves the termination agreement," Maxfield told Brean.

Oh, and count the money. There's also that.

Steve Sebelius is a Review-Journal political columnist and author of the blog SlashPolitics.com. Follow him on Twitter at www.Twitter.com/SteveSebelius or reach him at (702) 387-5276 or ssebelius@reviewjournal.com.