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 24th day of November 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, Director of Operations Dan Krebs, Director of Energy Resources Dan Bedbury, Director of Communications Lena Wittler, Director of Engineering Cal Morris, Director of Information Services Mike Harris, Corporate Communications Manager Erica Erland, Senior Manager of Large Industrial Customers and Conservation Planning Larry Blaufus, Manager of Customer Service Robert Hill, Manager of Energy Planning and Operations Tom Haymaker, and Assistant to CEO/General Manager Margaret Anderson.
Press Representatives: None
Others Present: 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 November 10, 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 November 24, 2015 from the District Auditor:
Electric Revenue Fund – $7,126,070.78
Water Revenue Fund – $633,747.69
Generating System Fund – $382,064.61
For a total of $8,141,883.08
Consideration of Resolution for Establishment of LUD Nos. 1223, 1231 and 1233
Director of Engineering Cal Morris addressed the Board regarding the Establishment of Local Utility District Nos. 1223, 1231 and 1233 for street lighting.
Resolution No. 7222 – LUD No. 1223 – Hidden Gardens PH 2
Resolution No. 7223 – LUD No. 1231 – Ashley Pointe PUD
Resolution No. 7224 – LUD No. 1233 – Janssen Subdivision
After the presentation by Mr. Morris, Commissioner Malinowski opened the public hearing for comment. There being no public comment, a motion was made by Commissioner Van Dyke, seconded by Commissioner Barnes, and unanimously carried that Resolution Nos. 7222 – 7224 (Materials C) be adopted.
Consideration of Intent to Establish LUD Nos. 1237 and 1239
Director of Engineering Cal Morris addressed the Board regarding the Intent to Establish Local Utility District Nos. 1237 and 1239 for street lighting.
Resolution No. 7225 – LUD No. 1237 – Granton Park PH3
Resolution No. 7226 – LUD No. 1239 – Neilsen 113th Subdivision
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. 7225 and 7226 be adopted and a public hearing was set for December 22, 2015 (Materials D).
Consideration of Transfer of Uncollectable Debt
Customer Service Manager Robert Hill addressed the board regarding the uncollectable debt for the first half of 2015 (Attachment E). The percentage of net losses from closed accounts to revenue for the first half of 2015 is .38%, which is well under the industry average of .83%. Mr. Hill reported on debt trends: gross debt should remain steady over the next 12 months, bankruptcy totals are trending downward and GOSP adjustments are the lowest we have seen in the last 15 years for the first half of the year. Clark continues to compare favorably across the industry with account delinquency. Following the presentation, staff recommended the board approve charging $844,393.00 to uncollectable debt for the first half of 2015. Commissioner Barnes moved to transfer $844,393.00 to uncollectable debt for the first half of 2015. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Van Dyke and passed unanimously.
Consideration of 2015 Conservation Potential Assessment and the 2016-2017 I-937 Conservation Targets
Senior Manager of Large Industrial Customers and Conservation Planning Larry Blaufus addressed the board (Materials F). After a review of the presentation, Mr. Blaufus recommended the approval of the 2015 Conservation Potential Assessment (CPA) and the 2016-2017 I-937 conservation target of 7.74 aMW and the 2016-2025 ten-year potential of 39.14 aMW. These targets were established using the Utility Analysis Option 3 from the CPA.
Commissioner Barnes moved for the adoption of the Clark Public Utilities 2015 CPA and the 2016-2017 I-937 conservation target of 7.74 aMW and 2016-2025 ten–year potential using the Utility Analysis Option 3. Commissioner Van Dyke seconded the motion and it passed unanimously.
The board thanked staff for their continued work on conservation.
Public Hearing on the Proposed 2016 Budgets for Electric, Generating and Water Systems
Director of Finance Rick Dyer addressed the board (Materials G) and provided a brief budget review. Mr. Dyer focused on power supply, capital requests and conservation planning. It was also noted that the Bonneville Power Association rate increase of 4.8% was absorbed into the current budget for 2015 and did not require a rate increase.
The board requested additional information on the low income tax credit allocation for 2016, Mr. Dyer will have Director of Customer Service Lisa Fix address that at the meeting on December 8, 2015.
Commissioner Malinowski opened the public hearing there being no comments the hearing was closed and formal adoption of the budget will occur at the next board meeting December 8, 2015.
October Financials
Director of Finance Rick Dyer addressed the board to report October financials (Materials H).
For the month of October, the Electric System reported a net income loss of $2.37 million compared to a projected loss of $2.25 million. End of yearnet income is expected to be at or near $15.0 million.
The Water System reported a net income of $263,000 in October compared to the budgeted net income of $644,000. To date the system is ahead of the $2.466 million net income budgeted, with a net income of $2.82 million.
October Wholesale Operations
Manager of Energy Planning and Operations Tom Haymaker addressed the board (Materials I). Slice results were below prompt month and budgeted forecast. Loads were below budget forecast even after adjusting for industrial conservation efforts. In general, prices remained stable during the month.
The River Road Generating Plant had a brief maintenance outage to repair steam turbine leaks October 16 – 18. Record market implied heat rates suggest the Plant will remain online until May 2016.
Commissioner Reports and Comments
Commissioner Malinowski reported on his attendance at the State Audit exit conference, he requested a staff report on the contents of that meeting.
Staff Reports
Director of Finance Rick Dyer provided a brief overview of the recent State Audit Report, reviewing the preliminary details of the management letter received regarding materials used during small works roster jobs.
Other Business before the Board
There being no further business before the Board, the meeting was adjourned at 11:27 am.