The Board of Light and Power Charter Change Coalition (BLPCCC), an organization not affiliated with or supported by the Grand Haven Board of Light and Power (BLP), is leading an effort to change the charter of the City of Grand Haven to place the BLP under the control of the Grand Haven City Council. During the effort to change the charter, the public has been provided with many pieces of misinformation.
During the August 17, 2023, meeting of the Board of Light and Power, BLP Engineering Manager Eric Booth gave a presentation entitled ‘Reviewing the Record’ which provided the public with facts, and in the process busted four myths which have been spread throughout the community.
Myth 1: The BLP insisted on building a new gas-fired power plant.
Fact 1: The BLP was directed by Grand Haven City Council to build a generating facility to replace JB Sims.
This myth has been spread by the BLPCCC and appeared on their website.
The following email from BLP General Manager Dave Walters to Grand Haven City Manager Pat McGinnis explained that operating JB Sims was no longer cost effective, and that the market should dictate whether or not Grand Haven would construct a replacement facility. At the time JB Sims was taken off-line, market conditions did not justify building a replacement plant.
Myth 2: The BLP raised rates without a public hearing and the charter amendment will improve transparency.
Fact 2: The current charter requires that the board conduct its business in an open setting in accordance with the Open Meetings Act. The board held multiple public meetings/hearings, one work session, produced multiple press releases and one customer publication. In addition, approved meeting minutes of all board meetings are provided to the city council and all rate changes are posted by the city clerk 30 days before becoming effective as required by the charter.
This myth was spread by volunteers collecting signatures to have the charter change placed on the ballot. On May 24, 2023, while collecting signatures outside the post office, Jeffrey Miller told a BLP employee that the board raises rates without public hearings. In addition, Jeffrey Miller, who claims to not be a spokesman for the CCC, but whose name appears on charter strategizing emails, sent a letter to the editor of the Tribune on May 18, 2023, stating, “currently the BLP can, through a quirk in the system, raise electrical rates without any regulatory or legislative review.” Once again, this myth was perpetuated by Jeffrey Miller during public comment on July 20, 2023, when he claimed the BLP buried “the decision in the seventh paragraph in a May news release.”
In reality, the rate increase in question was brought to the attention of the public on several occasions in public forums.
The following email shows Jeffrey Miller’s involvement with the BLPCCC going back as far as April 2022.
Myth 3: Of the appointed boards, most are advisory.
Fact 3: Of the seven municipal electric utilities in Michigan with more than 10,000 customers, all have decision-making utility boards separate from city councils, with the exception of Bay City.
This myth was spread by Andrea Hendrick, a member of the BLP board and Mayoral candidate for the City of Grand Haven, and also by Ryan Cummins, a member of the Grand Haven City Council.
If the charter change is approved, the BLP will no longer have decision making capability and will be appointed by members of the Grand Haven City Council. According to the Michigan Municipal Electric Association and Michigan Public Power Agency, “Utility boards also have the safety expertise required to oversee a complicated industry. Eliminating the safety expertise from individuals serving on a utility board is foolish and puts lives at risk. If Grand Haven moves from an independent utility model to one of a city council, it would be unprecedented in Michigan and nationally. It would also remove a vital piece of expertise at the management level. MMEA and MPPA are united in their opposition to a member, like Grand Haven, terminang an independent utility board.”
Myth 4: The governance structure needs to be fixed.
Fact 4: The BLP has received Diamond Level recognition from the American Public Power Association (APPA). Reliability has been improved by obtaining full network integrated transmission service (NITS). The BLP has a diversified power supply portfolio saving the community millions of dollars each year.
According to the American Public Power Association,
Evaluating the governance structure best suited for excellence should be based on a series of criteria that capture the most important responsibilities and processes the board needs to address. Does the governance structure:
permit board members to have a singular focus on their fiduciary duties of overseeing the public power utility?
provide for autonomous decision-making authority of the board that is equal to and commensurate with its responsibilities for governing the utility?
encourage the greatest degree of independence in board actions, separating political influences as much as practical and permitting the board to focus on business-based reasoning?
afford members the time and opportunity sufficient to understand the complex policy issues and operating challenges facing a utility in a changing business environment?
enable members to focus on establishing strategic direction, priorities, outcomes, and goals specific to the needs of customers-owners and utility?
provide for the financial stability of the utility, including moving quickly to recover costs, if necessary, to protect the utility’s creditworthiness and the investments of bondholders?
make the utility fully accountable to its customers-owners?
Ask yourself how would your answers to these questions change if the charter of the BLP changes?
The BLPCCC appears to be a politically motivated organization. Politics do not belong in decisions that affect power. All citizens want their lights to come on when they flip the light switch. They also don’t like the idea of relegating people with electrical safety expertise to the background. Please do your homework and make sure you understand the facts before you vote.