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The Salem Electric
Board of Directors met on May 12 at 7:00 p.m. for the Annual Membership
Meeting. The meeting was called to order by President Jim Dyer and all board
members were present. The members present at the annual membership meeting
constitute a quorum and all members of Salem Electric received a notice of the
meeting.
The nominations for the two director positions were announced as
follows:
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Position No. 3
Curt Culver
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Position No. 4
None
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The ballot box was declared closed and staff left the room to
count the ballots.
A motion was made by Culver to dispense with the reading of the
1997 annual meeting minutes. The motion was seconded by Bonesteele and carried
unanimously. A motion was made by Culver, seconded by Anderson, and carried
unanimously to approve the 1997 annual meeting minutes as written.
Board Chair's Report
Dyer gave a report on the state of Salem Electric. Both the
fiscal and calendar years were very successful for the cooperative. He used
this opportunity to thank the staff for the usual outstanding job they had
done. He highlighted SE's involvement with the community. Among the highlights
this year were the donation of lighting to Marion Square Park, sponsorship of
the Salem Symphony, and many other donations in support of worthy local
non-profit organizations. Dyer said the board was instrumental in defeating the
hastily-conceived deregulation plans in the past legislative session. He
assured the audience that the board will continue to monitor the situation and
report to the membership on the status of the restructuring issue as we move
toward the next session.
General Manager's Report
Robert Speckman welcomed the membership and acknowledged the
employees present at the meeting.
Speckman reported that SE's reliability has continued to be
outstanding. The 1996 figure for outage time per customer was 8.11 minutes. In
1997 it was even better, at 7.44 minutes. Compare this to the national average
of 70 minutes for public power and 160 minutes for investor-owned utilities.
Speckman said Salem Electric's commitment to remain debt free has
given the cooperative flexibility and has helped to keep rates low. SE has
borrowed money on occasion, like for the remodeling of the building. Money may
also be borrowed in the near future to purchase three substations from the
Bonneville Power Administration. This is a move that will save Salem Electric
and the members substantially in the future.
Speckman also commented on the deregulation of the utility
industry. He assured the audience that the goal of SE is to protect the
benefits and low cost power enjoyed in the Northwest. Much has been learned by
those who got involved early on, like Enron, who has now pulled out of the
residential sector in California, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island. He said the
Board and staff will continue to do what can be done to protect the interest of
the members.
Employee Presentations
Debbie Addison: Debbie was hired in 1994 as a Customer
Service Representative and was promoted to Member Services Coordinator in 1997.
Debbie explained several conservation programs. She displayed various compact
fluorescent bulbs and talked about the appliance program. You may have seen
Debbie in the Salem Electric Drill Team that performed in the Keizer Iris
Parade. Debbie was the one wearing the fake nose and glasses disguise.
Chris Krieck: Chris joined Salem Electric as an accountant
in 1990. He provided an overview of the accounting system and outlined the
monthly accounting dates and deadlines for the various financial spreadsheets
and financial reports. I know the board really appreciates the work this
department does. Their outstanding work on the budget makes our job much easier
because it is always impeccable. Every year the financial auditors have nothing
but praise for the staff reports.
Roger Kuhlman: Roger became the Engineering and
Operations Manager in 1991. He gave a presentation on the Foote Creek Rim Wind
Project in Wyoming and described various aspects of the project.
Following several questions from the members, President Dyer
reported the election results as follows:
Position No. 3
Curt Culver, re-elected 1,711 votes
Meeting adjourned at 8:23 p.m., followed immediately by an
organizational meeting of the board.
Organizational Meeting
The meeting was called to order at 8:25 p.m. by President Jim
Dyer with all board members present. Towslee announced a recommendation by the
committee appointed to review the process for appointing someone to fill the
vacant board position. The committee recommended that the process of
advertising and soliciting interested members be followed by an interview
process. Motion was made by Wolf, seconded by Culver and carried unanimously to
accept the committee recommendation.
Nominations were opened for President and Chair of the Board.
Dyer was nominated by Wolf. Nominations were closed. Dyer was elected by
acclamation.
Nominations were opened for Vice-President. Towslee was nominated
by Anderson. Nominations were closed. Towslee was elected by acclamation.
Nominations were opened for Secretary/Treasurer. Wolf was
nominated by Culver. Nominations were closed. Wolf was elected by acclamation.
Meeting adjourned at 8:31 p.m.
-- Bill Wolf, Secretary/Treasurer
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