Meeting of Commissioners of
Public Utility District No. 1 of Clark County, Washington
November 19, 2019
A meeting of Commissioners of Public Utility District No. 1 of Clark County was held at the Electric Center, 1200 Fort Vancouver Way, Vancouver, Washington, on Tuesday, November 19, 2019.
Present: President Nancy Barnes, Vice President Jane Van Dyke and Secretary Jim Malinowski Commissioners, CEO/General Manager Lena Wittler, Director of Finance Melissa Ankeny, Director of Engineering Cal Morris, Director of Water Doug Quinn, Director of Energy Resources Dan Bedbury, Director of Operations Gene Morris, Director of Communications Erica Erland, Director of Information Services Mike Harris, Director of Customer Service Lisa Fix, Human Resources Manager Nichole Reitzenstein, Senior Communications Manager Heather Allmain, Senior Legal Counsel John Eldridge, GIS/Joint Use Manager Ben Jarrell, Energy Services Project Manager Matt Babbitts, Media Specialist Dameon Pesanti, Customer Experience Manager Cameron Daline, Data Analyst Jeff Peterson and Assistant to CEO/General Manager Margaret Anderson.
Press Representatives: None
Others Present: Rick Marshall, Alan Bar – Verizon, Steven Bratt – Vancouver Public Schools, Meridee Pabst – AT&T, Don Steinke, Patty Page, Mark Maggiora – Middle Class Alliance, Chris Thobaben – Middle Class Alliance (Materials A)
At 9:00 a.m., President Barnes called the meeting to order for the transaction of formal business. Commissioner Barnes noted a quorum was present and the agenda (Materials B) was approved as submitted.
Consideration of the Minutes of November 5, 2019
There were no changes or corrections.
Public Comment – Non Agenda Items
Don Steinke requested information about the River Road Generating Plant bond and where we get our natural gas for the plant, staff will follow up with Mr. Steinke. He also provided his thoughts on methane gas, energy storage and the social cost of carbon.
Consideration of Accounts Payable
The board, by a unanimous vote, approved the following payment amounts as listed on the Letter of Transmittal dated November 15, 2019 from the District Auditor (Materials C):
Electric Revenue Fund – $16,961,327.16
Water Revenue Fund – $238,343.52
Generating System Fund – $42,493.94
For a total of $17,242,164.62
Employee Service Award
Director of Information Services Mike Harris recognized Data Analyst Jeff Peterson for 20-years of employment (Materials D).
Pole Attachment and Small Cell Antenna Rate Proposal
Director of Engineering Cal Morris provided the board with an overview of pole attachment and small cell antenna rates (Materials E). Following the presentation Mr. Morris asked for board approval of the rates.
Public Hearing on Pole Attachment Rates and Small Cell Antenna Rates and Consideration of Adoption of Resolutions for Pole Attachment Rates and Small Cell Antenna Rates
Commissioner Barnes opened the public hearing for Resolution No. 7576 Revising Rates and Charges for Pole Attachments (Materials F). There were no public comments and the public hearing was closed. Commissioner Van Dyke moved to adopt Resolution No. 7576 as presented, Commissioner Malinowski seconded the motion and it passed unanimously.
Commissioner Barnes opened the public hearing for Resolution No. 7577 Adopting Rates and Charges for Small Cell Antennas (Materials G). After hearing comments from Chris Thobaben, Patty Page and Mike Maggiora Commissioner Barnes closed the public hearing. Commissioner Van Dyke moved to adopt Resolution No. 7577 as presented, Commissioner Malinowski seconded the motion and it passed unanimously.
Low Carbon Fuel Standards Presentation
Energy Services Project Manager Matt Babbitts updated the board on the possible introduction of a Low Carbon Fuel Standard bill during the 2020 state legislative session (Materials H). Mr. Babbitts provided the background, potential funding and impacts to utilities. The board thanked Mr. Babbitts for the presentation and they look forward to watching this during the legislative session.
Broadband Presentation
Director of Information Services Mike Harris presented the board a thorough report that explored the possibility of Clark Public Utilities becoming a provider of wholesale internet service (Materials I). The presentation detailed the current state of broadband internet service in Clark County, the experiences that other public utilities have had providing this type of service, the costs of building the infrastructure, attracting internet service providers to use it and choosing which part of the county to service first.
Mr. Harris summarized by saying the current situation presents an opportunity to better serve the county; but building and maintaining the broadband infrastructure would be very expensive. The project would likely require participation by the other municipal bodies in the county.
Commissioners thanked Mr. Harris and staff for the extensive presentation, and asked that staff meet with the State Broadband Office and the Middle Class Alliance group to work toward a coordinated effort with other local agencies.
Members of the public Chris Thobaben, Mark Maggiora and Steve Bratt collectively thanked staff for the excellent presentation and all look forward to a coordinated effort with the State Broadband Office to move forward their desire to increase access and improve broadband service in rural Clark County.
Commissioner Reports and Comments
Commissioner Malinowski reported on his attendance at the Washington PUD Association meetings.
Commissioners Barnes and Van Dyke reported on their attendance at the Public Power Council meeting.
Commissioner Van Dyke reported on her attendance at the Northwest Power and Conservation Council meeting and the RiverPartners annual meeting.
Staff Reports
There were no staff reports.
Public Comment
There were no public comments.
Other Business before the Board
There being no further business to come before the Board, the meeting was adjourned at 12:17 p.m.