A meeting of Commissioners of Public Utility District No. 1 of Clark County was held in the District offices, 1200 Fort Vancouver Way, Vancouver, Washington, on Tuesday, the 25th day of August at the hour of 9:00 a.m.
Present: President Jim Malinowski, Vice President Nancy Barnes, Secretary Jane Van Dyke Commissioners, CEO/General Manager Wayne Nelson, Director of Finance Rick Dyer, Directors of Energy Resources Dan Bedbury and Pat McGary, Director of Operations Dan Krebs, Director of Water Doug Quinn, Director of Information Services Mike Harris, Director of Engineering Cal Morris, Director of Customer Service Lisa Fix, Corporate Communications Manager Erica Erland, Manager of Energy and Planning Operations Tom Haymaker, Materials and Purchasing Manager Cathy Wannamaker and Assistant to CEO/General Manager Margaret Anderson.
Press Representatives: None
Others Present: None (Materials A)
The order of business recorded below reflects the published agenda (Materials B)
At 9:00 a.m., President Malinowski called the meeting to order for the transaction of formal business.
Consideration of the Minutes of August 11, 2015
There were no changes or corrections
Consideration of Accounts Payable
The Board, by a unanimous vote, approved the following payment amounts as listed on the Letter of Transmittal dated August 25, 2015 from the District Auditor:
Electric Revenue Fund – $13,017,304.57
Water Revenue Fund – $843,111.92
Generating System Fund – $272,726.48
For a total of $14,133,142.97
Consideration of Intent to Establish LUD Nos. 1197, and 1226
Director of Engineering Cal Morris addressed the Board regarding the Intent to Establish Local Utility District Nos. 1197 and 1226 for street lighting.
Resolution No. 7200 – LUD No. 1197 – Corrina’s Crest
Resolution No. 7201 – LUD No. 1226 – Ashley Ridge PH 2
After the presentation by Mr. Morris, Commissioner Malinowski opened for comment. There being no public comment, a motion was made by Commissioner Barnes, seconded by Commissioner Van Dyke and it was unanimously carried that Resolution Nos. 7200 and 7201 be adopted and a public hearing was set for September 22, 2015 (Materials C).
Consideration of Bid Award 973 for Electronic Mail Inserting System
Materials and Purchasing Manager Cathy Wannamaker reviewed the memo dated August 20, 2015, which detailed the bid results (Materials D). The bid response from CTX Business Solutions was rejected as non-responsive due to not meeting multiple bid submission requirements. Commissioner Barnes moved to recommend that Bid No. 973 be awarded to the low evaluated bidder Bell and Howell LLC in the amount of $271,750.00 plus applicable taxes. Commissioner Van Dyke seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously.
Consideration of Dispatch Remodel
Director of Operations Dan Krebs presented to the board a request to amend the 2015 budget to allocate $770,000 for the dispatch center remodel (Materials E). The goal is to complete the required infrastructure upgrades as well as the installation of new technology and workspaces prior to the NERC onsite pre-audit review scheduled for mid-January 2016.
Commissioner Barnes moved to amend the 2015 budget to allow for the funding to remodel the dispatch center, in an amount not to exceed $770,000, Commissioner Van Dyke seconded the motion and it passed unanimously.
July Financial Report
Director of Finance Rick Dyer addressed the board to report July financials (Materials F).
For the month of July, the Electric System reported net income of $341,000 compared to a budgeted loss of $939,000. The increase in net income can be attributed to higher system sales and higher off system sales. To date the system is roughly $4.6 million ahead of budget for net income, a trend that is expected to continue through year-end.
The Water System reported a net income of $696,000 in July compared to the budgeted net income of $173,000. To date the system is ahead of budget with a net income of 626,000, which is well above the budgeted year to date loss of $638,000.
July Wholesale Operations Report
Manager of Energy and Planning Operations Tom Haymaker addressed the board (Materials G). Slice results were below prompt month and budget forecast. Loads were well above month average forecast for budget, recording the highest monthly average load ever for summertime. The weather continues to be record setting with July being the second warmest since 1985 and the January through July temperatures being the warmest since 1962.
River Road Generating Plant (RRGP) suffered a minor and short-term outage on Friday August 21. The cause was a miss-operating relay that isolated the plant from the grid requiring a shutdown of the generator, which in turn caused some other minor issues. Continued record market implied heat rates suggest RRGP will remain online until May 2016.
Commissioner Reports and Comments
Commissioners Malinowski and Van Dyke cut the ribbon at the community solar event; both Commissioners thanked the staff for a job well done. Commissioner Malinowski added he was glad to see many elected officials in attendance.
Commissioner Malinowski attended the exit conference last week for the 2013 Energy Independence Act audit.
Commissioner Van Dyke wanted to be sure that staff is not taking a public position on land use alternatives. CEO/General Manager Wayne Nelson stated that Clark Public Utilities remains neutral on land use issues as a service provider in the county. Our stance is: Tell us what service you need once the land use decision has been made.
Staff Reports
Director of Finance Rick Dyer reviewed the 2015 State Auditor Report for the Energy Independence Act for 2013 (Materials H). The auditors found that the utility had satisfied the requirements of the law and found no issues requiring reporting to the Department of Commerce.
Clark Public Utilities and the State Auditor’s Office (SAO) continue to disagree on auditing standards with the Energy Independence Act. The SAO is unsure if they can audit with this continued disagreement.
Commissioner Malinowski was pleased with how staff handled their position with the SAO.
Mr. Nelson took the last minutes of the board meeting to thank outgoing Energy Resources Director Pat McGary for his service toClark Public Utilities and his contribution to Public Power in the State of Washington, adding that he will be greatly missed.
Other Business before the Board
There being no further business before the Board, the meeting was adjourned at 10:35 a.m.