NEPPA eNewsletter
April 2013
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Once again, NEPPA had a strong presence at the American Public Power Association March Rally with some 30 members representing all six New England states visiting more than 22 congressional offices. In addition, at the invitation of APPA, NEPPA had a representative at each of the five meetings with the individual FERC Commissioners.
The messages we all carried regarding our concerns with ISO-NE, tax-exempt financing on municipal bonds, Dodd-Frank, cyber security and constraints in NE with natural gas were met with equal concern on the part of our Washington representatives and staff. H.R. 1038, a staff bill regarding a "fix" of the "unintended consequence" of the Dodd-Frank legislation with regard to "swap dealers," was submitted to the Ag Committee during the rally. A number of NEPPA members were able to discuss the bill with their representatives soliciting their co-sponsorship of this important legislation.
The Legislative Committee thanks everyone who made the trip this year. With the support of Morgan Meguire and the work of the Committee, NEPPA continues to enrich its relationships with all the Congressional offices and regulatory bodies. The continued support of the membership is a key component of NEPPA’s success in this area.
Offices visited by NEPPA members:
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EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR'S REPORT
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In this issue, Sharon Staz gave an update on NEPPA members attending the APPA Rally and conducting hill visits. Nevertheless, I wanted to share some insights that may have gone undocumented. While the visits were productive for NEPPA and its positions, it was even more dramatic for Mike Cloutier. Mike participated in almost every Massachusetts office visit, which were all Democratic. As we began the meetings, Mike was proudly wearing his Republican pin. Mike’s last meeting was with Representative Joe Kennedy, and in an action that can only be attributed to the Kennedy magic, upon leaving the office, Mike was seen throwing his pin into the waste basket! Just before he jumped into a cab for the airport, he was seen signing a petition in support of gun control and saying that he only wishes that Barney Frank would run for the open Senate seat.
Well after that, I have to tell you any doubt I had about the Kennedy magic was gone!
Sharon Staz and John Bilda participated in APPA-facilitated FERC meetings on behalf of NEPPA, and they also experienced dramatic events. The commissioners agreed that the structure of the ISO New England market was designed and implemented in a way that was detrimental to public power. They found the desire of ISO New England to increase their expenses by adding new staff unacceptable. They reversed their decision on self-supply, citing that a market could not dictate what an owner did with their own assets, without creating a form of pseudo government-endorsed monopoly.
The biggest surprise was the turnaround on transmission incentives! They found the incentive rates and adders on new transmission projects to be gouging the consumers and beyond the pale. They called for an immediate reduction to a flat 6%, which is only twice the lending rates and the average return on investment for other opportunities. I am not sure how directly these changes were related to Sharon and John’s visits, but commissioners were seen later in the week in slings and casts. They also announced new security protocols for the FERC offices.
During the days of our Hill visits, President Obama was also up at the Capitol reaching across the aisle to Republican members of Congress. His motorcade created some congestion and almost some tardiness by us to meetings. We then ran into him and his Secret Service escort in the halls. For those who have never experienced the Secret Service, they are mostly tall and wiry. They look like the antagonist in the Matrix, able to spring at you from great distances with ease.
As our group was moving through the halls, we were brushed aside by the Secret Service escort to allow the President to pass, but because of her size, Judy Gove was apparently glanced over and collided with the President. He bowled her right over. Being a good guy, he reached down and helped her up. He then attempted to make some small talk, but Judy being a great poker player thanked him for helping her up and stated that she could see by his face that his mind was elsewhere and she would not keep him. He was shocked by her honesty and asked if he was that transparent. She simply stated that bluffing might not be his strong suit. The President, being an avid poker player, decided to invite Judy to an evening game he had going.
Judy accomplished more in the three-hour game she had with the President than all of our combined hill visits to save tax-free municipal bonds. As she told the story to us, they were down to the final hand of the evening, and she had been baiting the President all evening by letting him win a little and building his confidence. In the final hand, she had a great draw. Joe Biden kept giggling at his hand and asking if anyone had any eights. Jay Carney, the Press Secretary, folded under pressure and former General Petraeus excused himself saying he had some place to be.
However, the President kept an icy stare on Judy. He knew the hand was down to the two of them. Then she saw what she needed. She saw the slight smile from the right side of his mouth that she had seen so many times in his Presidential debates and meetings with John Boehner. He was bluffing! So, she doubled down and put municipal bonds on the table. If she won, the tax-free municipal bonds would be off limits for the rest of his term. When her full house topped his pair, she saved our critical funding source. But he did get the last word. He whispered in her ear that tax-free municipal bonds were never in jeopardy, because of the amount issued by Chicago and his desire to have a place to live when he finished his term!
I hope you enjoyed my homage to Pat Hyland. Pat was notorious for his APRIL FOOLS articles and I hope no one was offended.
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ASSOCIATION HAPPENINGS
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NEPPA is accepting nominations for the Carol A. Tracey Customer Service Award. This award is presented to employees of NEPPA member utilities who deliver outstanding service to their customers, either through sustained exceptional performance in serving their customers or the development of new and/or innovative programs to meet customer needs. Written nominations must be signed by the utility General Manager and submitted to the NEPPA office by no later than March 30, 2013. Click here to print the form. Mail to Northeast Public Power Association, 200 New Estate Road, Littleton, MA 01460 or fax to 978.952.7320.
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Starting this month, we will be doing a feature on the Utility and Affiliate members who have generously donated to the NEPPA Training Center or have had a part in NEPPA’s move. This month we will start with Pascoag Utility District.
Mike Kirkwood had this to say:
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EPS Technology, Inc. became an Associate Member of NEPPA as of March 1. EPS Technology is located at 29 N. Plains Highway, Suite #12, Wallingford, CT 06492. Charles B. Browder is the Sales Manager and he can be reached by phone at 203.679.0145 or by fax at 203.679.0152. EPS Technology is a NETA Certified Electrical Testing and Engineering Services company.
NEPPA welcomes Greenlee, a Textron Company, as an Associate Member as of Tuesday, March 19, 2013! Greenlee is a manufacturer of hand and power tools that are used in the utility industry. Mark Johanson is the primary contact and he can be reached by phone at 603.491.2399 or by fax at 801.659.8381. You may also contact Mark via email at mjohanson@greenlee.textron.com. Greenlee is located at 737 Eley Lane in Pembroke, NH 03275.
NEPPA welcomes MPower Innovations as an Associate Member! MPower Innovations is located at 1051 N. Lynndale Drive Suite #2A in Appleton, WI 54914. MPower provides easy-to-use, cost-effective mapping services, GIS software and Smart Grid Integration Services. The primary contact is Greg Calcari, Principal, and he can be reached by phone at 920.470.0292 and by email at gcalcari@mpowerinnovations.com.
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NEPPA is currently looking to add to its contract instructors. We are seeking both safety and technical instructors. These positions are part-time, based on scheduling needs and individual availability. They include travel, which is reimbursed. A qualified safety trainer will have crew experience, general knowledge of industry safety standards and procedures, be comfortable speaking in front of groups and have the ability to manage a classroom. A qualified technical trainer will have a background or education in engineering for electric utilities, general knowledge of industry technical standards, be comfortable speaking in front of groups and have the ability to manage a classroom. Instructors will be trained on NEPPA’s classes/content and presentations. Instructors are required to adhere to the prescribed curriculum. If interested, please contact Steve Socoby at (978)-540-2204 or by email at ssocoby@neppa.org.
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CALENDAR
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May 16-17, 2013 For more information, click here. ##SHARELINKS##
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April 10-12 For more information, click here. ##SHARELINKS##
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April 23 For more information, click here. ##SHARELINKS##
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EDUCATION & TRAINING UPDATE
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NEPPA would like to announce the promotion of Steve Socoby from Senior Trainer to Director of Training. This promotion has been well overdue and long deserved. Many of you know Steve from our Apprentice program or the Apprentice Rodeo, because he has been operating them for the past five years. During his tenure, we switched over to the Northwest Lineman College as our curriculum provider. Even more important was the level of instruction that Steve added and the critical eye he has for skills.
Because of his dedication to the program we set out to address skills quality this past year and as a result we have added the NEPPA certification to the Apprentice program. NEPPA will issue certificates each year to certify the performance of required physical standards that are to be achieved at each level of the program. Steve worked with general foremen to create these performance standards and this allows NEPPA to give a more complete report to utilities on their attendees' performance.
Anyone who has taken one of Steve’s classes knows that he is tough on himself and his students. He may have taught a class a hundred times, but the day before he is reviewing and if needed, updating the content.
This past year when we were working on our move to Littleton, Steve was instrumental and oversaw the addition to some new elements of our training facility. We added a substation, confined space and meter lab for programs that were previously limited to site visits or theoretical discussions. Now in addition to the classroom teaching, NEPPA has hands-on experiences for students, thus improving our Metering, Substation and Confined Space certificate programs.
Steve is a Maine guy, born and bred. After more than 35 years of experience as a journeyman lineworker and line superintendent with Houlton, Maine, we lured him down to NEPPA with the promise of an opportunity to share his knowledge and a trail of lobsters. Okay, so the lobsters weren’t real, but he was down here and the drive back was long, so he stayed.
Steve’s attention to quality and integrity will ensure the high standards that NEPPA has established.
Congratulations Steve!
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LEGISLATIVE UPDATE
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By Elizabeth K. Nevitt and Lori Pickford
In This Issue...
• Congressional Focus: Sequestration hits, House and Senate pass differing Budgets and Congress sends another six-month government funding bill to the President...
• Municipal Bonds: A state and local groups’ report, a hearing in the House tax-writing committee and a bipartisan House resolution boost momentum for maintaining the exemption for municipal bonds...
• Dodd-Frank Implementation: The House Ag Committee approves the "Public Power Risk Management Act," designed to even the swaps playing field for municipal utilities...
• Clean Energy: Senators introduce bipartisan "Hydropower Regulatory Efficiency Act," Sen. Whitehouse (D-RI) and others circulate a carbon price discussion draft and Sen. Shaheen (D-NH) testifies on energy efficiency...
• Cyber Security: Moving forward on the President’s Executive order on cyber, NIST announces a "framework" workshop...
• Personnel: Obama taps Gina McCarthy to head EPA, Ernest Moniz to lead the DOE; APPA’s Crisson announces his retirement...
Sequestration Hits Agencies
Federal agencies began to implement across-the-board sequestration cuts on March 1, after the Senate failed to pass two partisan measures to head off the cuts. With FY13 already well underway, $85 billion will be cut from discretionary spending. Unless Congress and the President reach agreement on an alternative, similar cuts will occur annually through 2021.
At the Department of Energy (DOE), the Science Office will see the biggest cut at $245 million, followed by the Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Office at $91 million. ARPA-E will lose $14 million. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) and the Energy Information Administration will lose $15 million and $5 million, respectively, for the remainder of the fiscal year. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s budget will be cut by $52 million.
House, Senate Budget Committees Pass Respective FY14 Budget Resolutions
Both the House and Senate have passed budget resolutions, which direct each committee of jurisdiction to draft detailed proposals/legislation to meet those targets. The differing bills do not need to be reconciled and will not become binding law.
The Senate’s Budget, their first in four years, allowed Senators to debate several "hot-button" energy and environmental issues by offering and voting on non-binding amendments. Most failed, largely along party lines, including an amendment from Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-OK) that would have prevented the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from regulating greenhouse gas emissions. Dueling carbon fee amendments failed, including one from Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) that would have ensured that any carbon fee revenue is returned to taxpayers, and one from Sen. Roy Blunt (R-MO) that opposed any fee or tax on carbon emissions that would have passed but was blocked on procedural grounds.
The Senate Budget does not reference municipal bonds specifically, but encourages the Finance Committee to focus on "inefficient tax expenditures" and those that "disproportionally benefit the wealthiest Americans," claims some have made against municipal bonds. It also suggests the Bowles-Simpson proposal, which advocated eliminating municipal bonds, could be an option to reform the tax code. The issue will now be decided by the Finance Committee.
Congress Clears CR for President’s Signature, Advance Budget Resolutions
On March 21, the House accepted the Senate version of a six-month funding bill to keep the government operating through Sept. 30 and avert a shutdown. The bill provides full funding for Defense, Veterans and some other agencies—but does not undo the overall sequestration funding levels.
To read the complete legislative update including the following topics, click the links below: ##SHARELINKS##
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OPINIONS & EDITORIALS
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By Rick Dacri, Dacri & Associates, LLC
Public power management is difficult and complex. To be successful, the relationship between the General Manager and the Board of Commissioners must be open and positive. Each must understand the other’s role and expectations. The General Manager’s job is to take care of everyone in the organization. His/her Board expects him/her to run and grow the business; carry out their mandates; recruit, retain and develop the internal talent; and prepare the organization for the future. It is the role of the Board to take care of their GM; not in a "kumbaya" sort of way, but more in a supportive manner. And this is where it can break down.
GMs, like any employee, want their basic needs met and when they are not, resentment occurs. They want a Board that can provide:
The role of the board is difficult, burdensome and complex. Members generally serve on a volunteer basis and occasionally without direct experience in public power. Their responsibilities are enormous and require critical decision making during their often infrequent board meetings. These include setting the organization’s strategic direction and ensuring that the GM is carrying out their mandates. Boards are taxed by the need to retain, motivate and when necessary, recruit top-notch GMs to run their organization. They know it is important to have:
What can the Board and the GM do to ensure that they maintain a strong, effective working relationship?
The Board should do the following:
The Board’s responsibilities are significant and if they are unable to do this, they should bring in an outside expert to assist them. Organizational success depends on a strong relationship, with everyone operating optimally. Take care of your GM, so that your GM can take care of everything and everyone else.
Rick Dacri is a workforce expert, management consultant, and author of the book "Uncomplicating Management: Focus On Your Stars & Your Company Will Soar." Since 1995 his firm, Dacri & Associates, has helped NEPPA members improve individual and organizational performance. He can be reached at rick@dacri.com and www.dacri.com.
NEPPA does accept articles from our Affiliate Members who want to educate our members on their expertise. If you are thinking about submitting an article to the Newsline, please contact Courtney Crouse at ccrouse@neppa.org.
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