With the Orcas Power and Light Cooperative’s board of commissioners election on April 30, The Sounder wanted to find out some basic information about the candidates prior to election. We asked the six candidates running for a position in either District 3 (Lopez, Decatur, Center and Charles islands) or District 4 (Shaw, Bell, Canoe and Crane islands) three questions. There are two positions available for District 3 and one for District 4. The candidates running for District 3 are incumbent Jim Lett, Dwight Lewis, Brian Silverstein and Lauren Stephens. Candidates for District 4 are incumbent Dr. Jerry Whitfield and Gabriel Jacobs.

Question 1: Why are you running for this position?

Question 2: What in your personal and professional history would make you a good fit for the position?

Question 3: What do you feel is the biggest issue when it comes to OPALCO?

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Answers from Jim Lett

Question 1:

I support the expansion of our grid today to ensure safe and reliable operations and also to prepare for the future. I applaud the foresight of the Board back in 1999 when the decision was made to go with a fiber optic system. I know from my peers in the industry that most, if not all, utilities are now scrambling to build this kind of communications infrastructure in order to man-age the stability of their grids as intermittent solar and wind generators become more prevalent and cost effective—and to man-age all the smart devices that are becoming standard in our industry and in peoples’ homes.

And, I strongly support Rock Island’s continued development. The services that RIC provides are critical to the sustainability of our communications across the board: public safety, access to health care, education, economic development, and jobs. I understand member concerns about the investment OPALCO is making in Rock Island, but the long term benefits far outweigh the short term concerns. The benefits to OPALCO and our community will continue for generations to come and I would like to see our current efforts in this regard come to fruition.

Question 2:

I was appointed to the Board in 2009 and currently serve my second term as President. I have completed required NWPPA coursework to achieve Credentialed Director Certification.

With 35 years of business experience with a national insurance company as Director of Loss Control, and Vice President of Commercial Lines Underwriting, Reinsurance and Marketing, I was responsible for revenues and results in excess of $100 million. This has been valuable background in helping with OPALCO’s complicated insurance program. I also served as advisor to the Washing-ton State University Business School.

Serving as Director, I have assisted our General Manager and participated with the Director team while keeping the lights on and progressing with programs currently underway.

Question 3:

Because of the challenge of delivering power to 20 islands, we need to manage OPALCO in the most efficient manner, sustaining our co-op in the face of flat energy usage (sales) and rising costs for power and fixed expense; developing an approach to setting rates as low as possible for our members, while still covering costs; completing the buildout of the Rock Island projects which will bring new revenue to the co-op to help offset these costs.

We must continue to find innovative ways to use technology to control and monitor our systems and determine the condition of our equipment such as submarine cables (which could delay capital project expense).

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Answers from Dwight Lewis

Question 1:

Having been a member of OPALCO for more than 40 years and after attending most of the Board meetings the past three years, I have concluded that our Coop is in serious financial trouble. As a board member, I will work to return our Coop’s focus; to providing affordable and reliable electrical power, to eliminating all non-essential expenditures not directly related to providing such power, to curtailing and beginning the reduction of the Coop’s current indebtedness and to promote an attitude of increased trust and transparency by the board members and management staff regarding the Coop’s activities.

Question 2:

I have lived on Lopez more than 40 years and conducted a very successful construction and excavation business doing work on all islands in San Juan County. Some of that work was for OPALCO installing more than fifty miles of power cable and several submarine cable projects. All of which collectively provides me with the skills and knowledge that will apply to the duties of a Board member.

Question 3:

Not unlike our County and our State, our Coop has the same problem. It is not a revenue problem it is a debt/spending problem that is out of control. We need to elect board members who have the moral courage to take the necessary actions to prohibit all nonessential expenditures not directly related to the purchase and distribution of electric power. For more information, Google my website at “affordableopalcopower”.

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Answers from Brian Silverstein

Question 1:

My first visit to the San Juans was a bicycle trip 35 years ago. My wife and I love this community. We purchased our home on Lopez in 2008 and moved here in 2013. And we never looked back.

I worked for Bonneville Power Administration, our power provider, for three decades. Now retired, I would like the opportunity to serve our community on the OPALCO Board. I believe that my understanding and experience in the energy world will help address the challenges OPALCO faces. There are exciting energy opportunities that give consumers more choices, but also presents risks for the utility. Addressing these challenges will require innovative thinking in technology, rate design and customer programs. As an engineer I enjoy problem solving.

I believe in community involvement and commit to listening to our Members before making decisions. I’m a recycling volunteer at the Lopez Dump and I’m on the board of our homeowners association.

Question 2:

I worked for Bonneville Power Administration, our power supplier, for 33 years. Retiring as Senior Vice President for Transmission, my responsibilities included planning, rates, operations, construction and maintenance. We faced many of the same challenges as OPALCO including maintaining or replacing aging equipment and ensuring that our crews have the right tools and training to stay safe while they keep the lights on.

Along with our customer and engineering team I worked closely with Bonneville’s public power utility customers to meet their unique needs. I regularly sought input from utilities, government, Tribes, environmental organizations and citizens. I’m proud of connecting over 5 million kilowatts of wind power to the power system. I received a Bachelors in Electrical Engineering at The Cooper Union and Masters in Electric Power at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.

Over the past two years I’ve attended many OPALCO Board meetings to learn about the issues. I’m not shy about offering recommendations and I work collaboratively to find win-win solutions.

Question 3:

Our challenge is to maintain reliable, safe, affordable and environmentally responsible electricity for our community. There are several things we need to do.

We should keep electricity affordable by first managing costs before raising rates. I support using a small portion of our revenue to assist members who need help to pay their bill. We should consider innovative rate designs to stabilize revenue as electric use declines so OPALCO stays financially sound. This must be done in a way that is fair for low energy users, those who have invested in efficiency and renewables and for full time and part time residents.

Pursue all cost-effective conservation. Explore demand response and rate designs to reduce OPALCO’s peak power purchases from Bonneville Power Administration.

Use our fiberoptic backbone investment to enhance crew safety, keep the lights on, improve metering and enable demand response. Develop cost-effective Broadband to support education, community development and enhance quality of life. Complete the buildout on schedule and within budget. Carefully manage investments in Rock Island to protect OPALCO members.

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Answers from Lauren Stephens

Question 1:

I ran for the OPALCO Board to be an advocate for individual rate payers and small business owners. I believe there should be an individual on the board who is an active business user of all OPALCO services and is aware of the huge impact policies and rate increases have on small businesses. I have been a small business owner on Lopez Island for 20 years. I am an active member of the Lopez community who raised my children here and sees the county changing and becoming a difficult place for families and young people to make a living. My business rents small, affordable office space and I am seeing new families able to work remotely, or start a new ventures due to improvements in communication services offered by OPALCO/Rock Island. At the same time, I see policies that make it unaffordable to get access to these services (2 year service contracts for example). I hope to be a voice for user friendly policies and pricing on the board.

Question 2:

My personal and professional experience makes me a candidate who would bring diversity to a board that is now comprised primarily of retired men. I am a small business owner on Lopez and work regularly with people struggling to grow their businesses on Lopez Island. In 2015 I worked extensively with OPALCO/Rock Island, doing a major commercial building upgrade. This involved all new power, including a new transformer, installation of solar panels, all new fiber optic wiring to 14 rental spaces, and new meters. This project gave me a unique perspective on what OPALCO does well and where they could improve.

I have 13 years of elective board service on both the Lopez Island School Board and the Fisherman Bay Sewer Board. I have experience on budgeting, levy and bonding campaigns for operations and capital projects. I have worked extensively on rate setting, union contract negotiation, policy development, risk management and personnel issues. As a sewer commissioner, I have experience running a small utility. My focus as a board member is responsible fiscal management and customer service. I advocate active board participation with staff to make decisions that serve both the agency and the people.

Question 3:

The biggest issue I see with OPALCO right now is the negative public perception of the board and suspicion about recent board actions. I support moves the current board has undertaken to help San Juan County keep pace in the modern technological world. On the power side, OPALCO upgrades to the smart grid and plans for replacement of aging infrastructure are necessary to continue the excellent and reliable service we all enjoy. I believe the purchase of Rock Island, the expansion and improvement of broadband, cellular, and emergency communication services in our county are all actions that will benefit current and future residents.

What I do not support is the manner that the board has adopted to undertake these moves. In a co-op, the relationship between the board and members should be one of mutual respect and transparency. I believe this relationship has deteriorated in recent years. The secrecy that accompanied the process to purchase Rock Island created mutual mistrust and the board must work to restore member confidence.

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Answers from Dr. Jerry Whitfield

Question 1:

I am a current OPALCO Board Member and was appointed to the District 4 Director position in April 2014. I believe my experience as a professional engineer and successful entrepreneur provide me with a unique ability to serve OPALCO and its membership. During the last two years I have been able to contribute substantially to the governance and decision making that is required of OPALCO Directors. I have played a key role in the turnaround from the revenue shortfall of 2014 as well as helping the decision making to purchase Rock Island and team up with T-Mobile to strengthen OPALCO’s Broadband Internet venture.

I have come to appreciate the strengths of OPALCO as a Cooperative. I would like to continue to support the Cooperative during challenging times ahead where OPALCO must invest wisely in significant infrastructure projects and where Rock Island Communications (RIC) must manage and finance deployment of an extensive broadband internet project.

I believe it is particularly important for the membership to have a pool of Director candidates to choose from who have strong business management backgrounds and technical expertise. I am happy to offer my continued services to the Cooperative and provide this necessary level of experience.

Question 2:

I was educated as an Aeronautical Engineer, with a PhD from Cambridge University. My field of engineering is with jet engines as well as gas and steam turbines for power generation. This experience equips me with a technical knowledge of power generation and the Utility business. In the early ’80’s I invented the wood pellet stove and built a successful manufacturing business around this product, managing 150 employees, and maintaining 60% market share. There are many similarities between the challenges facing Rock Island Communications today and those I faced in creating and satisfying a market for wood pellet stoves 25 years ago.

During the last two years I have learned the dual responsibility of Directors of a Cooperative to serve the membership by maintaining low electrical rates consistent with a safe, and reliable service, and to serve OPALCO by maintaining a financially strong organization. To this end I have attended Director School provided by NRECA (National Rural Electric Cooperative Association) and have been appointed a Director of WRECA (Washington Rural Electric Cooperative Association). I believe my experience as a Professional Engineer and entrepreneur combined with my knowledge of Rural Electric Cooperatives make me an excellent fit for this position.

Question 3:

Keeping electric rates low consistent with strong fiscal management of OPALCO is always an important issue, and will continually be a major focus for me. However, I believe the biggest challenge facing OPALCO today is the successful development of Rock Island Communications (RIC) into a service company providing broadband internet to the people of San Juan county, and the biggest issue is to create financial independence of RIC from OPALCO.

RIC has been established as a for-profit, Limited Liability Company wholly owned by OPALCO. Start-up capital has been provided by OPALCO by way of a generous $7.5M loan from the membership. Creating financial independence for RIC is important so as to protect OPALCO and its membership from financial risks associated with its wholly owned subsidiary and to provide sufficient capital for RIC’s future development. The Board should seek refinancing of OPALCO’s loan at an early juncture and repay this loan in full. While OPALCO will have to provide a financial guarantee to the lending bank, this requirement can sunset as RIC successfully meets certain development and financial goals.

Providing for refinancing and carefully managing RIC’s business plan is probably the biggest issue currently facing the Board of Directors.

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Answers from Gabriel Jacobs

Question 1:

I am running for the OPALCO Board to change OPALCO’s direction. Here are some of the problems:

From 2011-2015 operating expenses increased 32% and long term debt 137%. As of last July rates were increased 10% four months after an increase of 12% on top of annual increases of 6%.The base charge (the charge for being hooked up) was raised 36% and then a 10% surcharge. More rate increases are planned. Most egregious is the increase in the base charges which no matter how much you reduce your usage you still have a large charge that has doubled and will go up. These increases are traceable to the three non-electric businesses OPALCO has bought or entered without approval of the membership.

I am running to try to reduce OPALCO’s costs and to make it a true co-op which involves the membership in major decisions.

The OPALCO Board has threatened legal action against Board members and others who disagree with their spendthrift programs. OPALCO’s policy #1 restricts Board members from sharing their disagreements with anyone not on the Board.

Question 2:

I served as director of a private school and for the first time it ran in the black. My background includes 29 years of school administration and teaching. Most of my career was as a principal in a large public school system in Maryland, which honored me with an award for my innovations. I have held summer jobs working for the Long Island Lighting Company.

I am a volunteer teacher in Goddard College’s South Seattle program, have served as a trustee of Goddard College and the Silver Spring, Maryland YMCA. I volunteer in the Shaw library and teach French. Photography, amateur radio, water color painting, rowing a shell, and sailing are my interests. My wife, Deborah, and I have lived on Shaw for 29 years

B.A. Goddard College, Ed.M. Harvard University. graduate work in physics, astronomy, and geology.

Question 3:

MY PRIORITIES

What I will work for if I am elected:

1. Lowering the base charges.
2. Minimizing further rate increases.
3. I will strive to reduce costs in all categories.
4. I will work to make OPALCO a true co-op where the membership is consulted about major changes in direction. I will start by submitting to the Board a revised policy #1which will make it incumbent upon the Board of Directors to share differing points of view with the membership.
5. I am in favor of Broadband. It is a necessity for businesses in today’s circumstances. However, it should not cost OPALCO nor be run by OPALCO. OPALCO should sell it and Rock Island. From my personal experiences with Rock Island it is being run very badly.
6. I am opposed to OPALCO going into businesses unrelated to providing electricity.