Last week, Etowah Water and Sewer Authority made several changes to rules which determine nomination and election of its board members.

The changes, which were approved unanimously Dec. 14, mean that those nominated for a seat on the board must meet with the authority’s nominating committee prior to qualifying for the post.

Also changed was the wording regarding a nominee’s “good standing” with the board prior to nomination.

“The person would have to be in good standing with the authority for the past two years,” said Etowah Water and Sewer Authority General Manager Brooke Anderson.

“As we go through each year, we look at items like this. We’ve noticed there were some wording issues in ‘nomination’ versus ‘election,’” Anderson said.

“When something occurred, did it happen before the election or nomination? We needed to tighten up the wording, because those are two different moments in time,” he added. “They were changed to make the process more understandable and make it flow better.”

Anderson said making changes to election bylaws right now was advantageous because “this is a time of year when we don’t have a lot of other things in the way.”

Etowah Water and Sewer Authority’s board is made up of five members elected to serve five-year terms.

According to Anderson, the board “sets policy, direction and vision for the authority, and approves action to get there.”