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 Employee
Profile:
Bob Speckman
It might surprise you to know that Bob Speckman's
uncle, Hank Alderman, was involved in hiring Woody Guthrie to write songs. Hank
worked for the information division of the Bonneville Power Administration, at
the time, and was later deputy administrator. "Sure", said Bob, "Guthrie was an
itinerant folk singer in those days. How else do you think he would come to
write Roll On Columbia Roll On." During his 30-day contract, Guthrie wrote 26
songs for BPA.
It's quite easy to get Bob talking about his
Oregon ancestors. There were at least three county sheriffs and one lynched
criminal; a feisty Congresswoman and a state historian (all "elbow" relatives
through his uncle Hank). Like uncle Hank, Bob loves history and has collected
trunks full of memorabilia on his forebears and his heroes. And he'll talk
about his wife, Kate, and his two boys, John and Sam, till the cows come home.
But getting him to talk at length about himself? Well, that's not quite so
simple. Which says a lot about what kind of a manager he'll make at Salem
Electric.
He was born in Portland, 1949, a middle son of
five children. The family moved to West Salem in 1963, when Bob's father -
manager and lobbyist for the Oregon State Pharmaceutical Association - moved
his office here. Later, after he got out of the Army and college, Bob joined
with his father to form Speckman and Associates. At 26, Bob got his first taste
of politics (which he still loves) and the electric utility business (which he
also still loves). The business' first client was Oregon Rural Electric
Cooperative Association. Bob became a Salem Electric employee in 1982. This
month, he takes Jere Overs' place as general manager, the fifth in Salem
Electric's 59 years.
Hired to build Salem Electric's customer and
community relations program, Bob said "the job stretched me from the start."
Salem Electric had bought into the region's nuclear power complex, called WPPSS
(Washington Public Power Supply System). A vocal anti-nuclear public picketed
the local cooperative. Cost overruns caused WPPSS to default with Salem
Electric at risk for some of the debt. The NW Power Planning and Conservation
Act had just been enacted, changing the utility industry's emphasis from sales
to conservation. And Salem Electric's board and membership went through some of
their own stretches, bringing about better communications and open meetings.
Maybe it was just as well Bob was a bachelor at the time.
In 1988, he became assistant general manager.
There were plans being drawn for construction of his "bachelor retirement
home." Then he met Kate, a Willamette University graduate and account executive
at the Statesman Journal. They married in 1990, started a family and soon moved
to bigger lodgings.
Salem Electric's next challenge, Bob says, is
coming to grips with the national movement towards "re-regulating the electric
utility industry" in the hopes of creating lower rates through increased
competition. While he sees nothing inherently wrong with competition, Bob
believes it may prove costly to the Northwest, where rates are already lower
than anywhere in the nation. With restructuring it is unlikely the Northwest
will maintain its present advantage of cheap power, while the rest of the
country wants the same, he said. "Many utility experts predict competition will
spell the end of conservation programs and a return to the sales mentality," he
said. "Our utility is very concerned that we not lose the conservation gains
we've made in the past 15 years."
Does he see radical changes ahead for Salem
Electric? Bob answered this way: "As long as we do our job, our members will
continue to want us to be here working for them."
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January 1 - Rate Decrease
The board of directors has adopted new rate
schedules for all residential and general service customers, resulting in an
overall rate decrease of 4.4%. These rates reflect the reduction of wholesale
power costs from BPA (7.4% retail rate decrease), the increased costs to fully
fund our conservation programs (2% retail increase), and to cover expected
Salem Electric operations costs over the next five-year period (1% retail
increase).
Not all classes received the same decrease.
Salem Electric hired a consultant to do a cost of service study. The result of
the study showed that the residential class should get a 5.9% reduction, while
the general service and general service with demand classes get reductions of
2.2% and 3.2%, respectively. The study also showed that because of the new BPA
wholesale rate structure, the winter period for general service rates should be
changed from September-March to August-April.
The new rates do not reflect the cost of
"green power." As mentioned in previous bulletins, Salem Electric has agreed to
buy as much renewable power as we can from BPA that would result in no more
than a 4% rate increase. The availability date of this renewable power is still
unknown.
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Safety First!
Electricity is a clean and efficient source of
energy that is readily available. However, if used incorrectly, it can be
fatal. Hazardous situations may occur involving utility lines. If you notice
any of the following situations or any other situation you feel could be
hazardous, call our office at 362-3601.
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A broken utility pole.
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A tree limb or kite that has fallen across utility lines.
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Wires dangling from utility poles.
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A fallen antenna touching or near a utility line.
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Wires lying on the ground.
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