January 22, 2023

Volume 8 | Issue 1

EDUCATION & LOBBY DAYS

Third-Party Ownership Discussion Will Take Center Stage at Education and Lobby Days

In May of 2022, Vote Solar and Midwest Renewable Energy Association set in motion a very consequential legal and political fight when they asked the Public Service Commission (PSC) to make declaratory rulings that third-party financed distributed energy resources are not “public utilities” and therefore not subject to PSC jurisdiction for regulatory purposes. In other words, they are seeking to become unregulated providers of electricity within the existing service territories of our electric cooperatives. This goes against the regulatory compact that has existed in this state for over 100 years.

As we prepare for a legal and political fight against the PSC’s split decision to approve third-party ownership, WECA has invited two experts to discuss why this issue is very problematic for our electric cooperatives. PSC Commissioner Ellen Nowak offered the dissenting vote on approving Vote Solar’s third-party petition last December, and again recently offered a forceful dissent in her opposition to MREA’s petition for a declaratory ruling. Commissioner Nowak will stress why reliability and consumer protections may suffer if we continue down this road of incremental deregulation. John Quackenbush was a key witness on behalf of Fair Rates for Wisconsin’s Dairyland—an advocacy group of organized labor with large and small energy providers and consumers committed to working with all stakeholders, including environmentalists, businesses, farmers, regulators, energy providers, and the trades, with a goal of developing policies that promote balance and fairness. Mr. Quackenbush, a former PSC Chair in Michigan, will highlight why consumer protection, marketing practices, and cross subsidization issues are being dramatically overlooked in these dockets.

Commissioner Nowak and Mr. Quackenbush will headline a deeper and broader discussion on the issue of third-party ownership and give attendees a better understanding of the harmful policy inequities that will lead to significant cost shifting, reliability, and consumer protection issues for our consumer members.

Commissioner Ellen Nowak's BIO

John Quackenbush's BIO (bio located at the bottom of page)

Miss America Grace Stanke to Headline Education and Lobby Days

Coming off her recent crowning as the 2023 Miss America winner, Grace Stanke will visit with electric cooperative members once again at this year’s Education and Lobby Days event. Headlining the first day of our two-day event, Grace will sit down with WECA’s Julie Lund for a one-on-one arm-chair discussion about her meteoric rise to the Miss America title and the “Clean Energy, Cleaner Future” platform that she is promoting throughout the country. A nuclear engineering student at UW-Madison, Grace’s message aims “to help America convert to zero-carbon energy with an emphasis on nuclear power.” After her one-on-one with Julie is finished, Grace will be staying with us for a few hours to converse with members, take pictures, sign autographs, and hopefully partake in our live ACRE auction.  

Grace joined WECA at last November’s Annual Meeting in Stevens Point for a panel discussion on nuclear energy. At that time, she was the reigning Miss Wisconsin and preparing for the Miss America competition that would take place a month later in Connecticut. Grace won the talent competition by performing a classical piece on the violin, earning her a $2,500 scholarship. Combined with her $50,000 scholarship awarded as a result of winning Miss America 2023, Grace has earned a cumulative total of $68,000+ in scholarship assistance through her state and Miss America competitions.

UPCOMING ACRE EVENTS

ACRE Reception for Top ACRE Donors

On the eve of the 2023 Education and Lobby Days event in March, WECA will host a first-ever ACRE special reception for top donors, and the inaugural year will feature special guest Tommy Thompson.

Any ACRE member who has contributed at least $500 to ACRE in calendar year 2022, or who contributes at least $500 before February 28, 2023 will be eligible to attend. The reception will be held the evening of March 21, 2023, from 5:30 to 7:00 p.m. in the Top of the Park room at the Best Western Park Hotel (two blocks from the Concourse Hotel). The room has beautiful panoramic views of the Capitol Square. Guests will enjoy heavy hors d’oeuvres and refreshments.

For eligible contributing members who would like to bring a spouse to the reception, a $50 fee payable to “WECA” will be required. Personal invitations with RSVPs for this event will go out in early March.

It’s not too late to get into the event! Anyone wishing to join/contribute to ACRE may do so online at www.cooperative.com/acrecontribution.

Gearing Up for ACRE Auction, Donations Needed!

Looking to build on the momentum from last year’s fundraiser, ACRE leadership is now seeking auction items for the 2023 event which will take place the evening of March 22 in Madison, during WECA’s Education and Lobby Days. Proceeds from the ACRE auction benefit the association’s nonpartisan political action committee and are used to support campaigns of candidates and elected officials who recognize the value of electric cooperatives and work together with WECA on relevant issues.

“ACRE donations really took a hit during the pandemic, but with our members’ incredible generosity we rebounded nicely last year, and we’d like to keep that going,” said WECA’s Rob Richard. “ACRE funding is vital to the work we do in building positive relationships with legislators on behalf of electric cooperative members.”

The Education and Lobby Days event, as well as the ACRE auction, were cancelled in 2021 due to the pandemic. That same year, every category of ACRE membership showed a drop in participation.

The successful 2022 ACRE auction raised $10,251, including a record $1,291 from the silent auction. Popular items include unique creations specific to Wisconsin, such as Karen Newbury’s always popular bourbon blackberry pie.

Under Wisconsin campaign finance law, all donated items must be purchased with personal funds or made by the donor. No co-op or corporate funds may be used in acquiring items to be donated.

Donated items can be dropped off at the WECA office in Madison at any time prior to Education and Lobby Days or brought directly to the event. If you intend to bring an auction item, please contact ACRE Coordinator Tina Walden at (608) 467-4599 or tina@weca.coop.

We take a look back at the Miss Rural Electrification program of the 1960s and ‘70s through the memories of a Wisconsin winner and the co-op leader who helped make it all happen; show you ways you can conserve water and save money in the process; shine a light on FFA Farm Toy Shows and all the memories they evoke; and offer some fun new ways to prepare potatoes. Don’t forget the Symbol Search—this month, we’ve got a little toy tractor hidden somewhere inside!

COOPERATIVE FAMILY FUND

COOPERATIVES STAND TOGETHER: Setting children up for success in the face of loss.

A father in Iowa, lost in a car accident. A father in Tennessee, lost to a sudden heart attack. A father in Georgia, lost to an accident while working on storm repair. Each was a valued employee of an electric cooperative. There are now eight children without a father. 

The purpose of the Cooperative Family Fund is to provide support for children of electric cooperative employees who have died while actively employed at a cooperative. This fund needs your help in supporting these children.

The Cooperative Family Fund was born on December 22, 2022. A standalone 501(c)(3) nonprofit, with no employees, it operates solely with the support of volunteers from cooperatives across the country. Donations will ensure that the fund can set aside $10,000 per child, which can be accessed when the child turns 18. The fund will partner with the affected cooperative to build a memory book of each lost employee, to be given to the family, and offer other avenues to help children navigate their grief.

If every electric cooperative donates $1,000 annually, the Cooperative Family Fund will have enough resources to help the children affected today and into the future.

The Cooperative Family Fund serves co-op employees regardless of gender or occupation (accountants, managers, member services, engineers, linemen, etc.). It is truly a fund for the entire family.

Donations can be sent to: Cooperative Family Fund, PO Box 298, Grawn, MI 49637-0298 or you can donate online at: https://www.cooperativefamilyfund.com/donations/donation-form/

To learn more, please visit their website at: www.cooperativefamilyfund.com If you have any questions, please write to support@cooperativefamilyfund.com or call (231) 620-9214.

When you work for a cooperative, you are part of a family.

As a family, we support each other in times of need.

TRAINING SPOTLIGHT

NEW! Advanced Work Order Topics

March 15–16, 2023 | 9 a.m.–4 p.m. (Wednesday) and continues 8:30 a.m.-12 p.m. (Thursday)

Comfort Inn & Suites | Black River Falls

WHO SHOULD ATTEND

Advanced Work Order Topics is a 1½-day workshop that should be attended after participation in Work Order Procedures (either the 1-day or 1½-day workshops are acceptable to do beforehand). Participants may include finance and accounting staff, managers and supervisors, leadership team staff, CEO’s.

Advanced Work Order Topics is an interactive extension of the Work Order Procedures Workshop. The objective of this workshop is to evaluate and elevate the baseline learning from the initial program. The two takeaways from this day will be “So what?” and “What’s next?" 

Learning objectives:

• All about assemblies
• Material makeover
• Standard costs
• Loan fund readiness
• Work plan status analysis
• Labor review
• Reporting the status of your plan
• A deep dive into special equipment

*This is a 1-1/2-day program ending at noon on the second day. Full program details can be found at https://bit.ly/2023AdvancedWO

NEW! Parliamentary Procedures Workshop

Tuesday, April 4, 2023

Florian Gardens Conference Center | Eau Claire

PROGRAM TIMES

Group 1 Registration: 7:30–8 a.m.

Group 1 Program: 8 a.m.–12 p.m.

Group 2 Registration: 12–1 p.m.

Group 2 Program: 1–5 p.m.

NOTE: We will be offering two separate group sessions, with the same program held once in the morning and repeated in the afternoon. A box lunch will be available to both groups at noon. Each group is limited to a maximum of 40 people. A waitlist will be created in case of any cancellations.

WHO SHOULD ATTEND

Senior leadership, minute takers, and board members

All co-op boards utilize parliamentary procedures to keep business discussions on track and to run their meetings with an objective and efficient process. Parliamentary procedure was developed by General Henry M. Robert during the Civil War to bring order to officer meetings. The basic premise of Robert’s Rules of Order is to protect each member’s rights, while seeing that the majority rules. Parliamentary procedure is designed to accomplish one thing at a time, bringing each to resolution before going on to the next, all the while seeing that courtesy is extended to everyone. This process has proved to be one of the most effective means by which individuals can take orderly action as a group.

Topics may include:

• Agendas
• Consent agenda dos and don’ts
• Voting
• Meeting minutes
• General meeting requirements
• Motions, amending motions, etc.
• Order of precedence
• Amendments
• Reports
• Nominations
• Referral to committee
• Executive committee, how to run them, confidentiality, minutes, etc.
• Annual meeting minutes approval

EDUCATION & TRAINING

Below is a current schedule of education and training programs through April. All programs will be held in person unless otherwise noted.

Please be sure to click the "Events Calendar" button below to see the full 2023 education and training schedule.

For questions on director and employee education programs, please contact Wendy Fassbind.

TO REGISTER, contact your cooperative's office manager or HR manager to register you for any WECA education program(s).

NRECA GOVERNANCE TALK

Hiring a New CEO? What Boards Need to Know About Executive Search

Deciding who will be your next CEO is one of the most important decisions the board will ever make. An executive search process is something that most boards do only occasionally, if ever. As co-op CEOs continue to approach retirement at historic levels, find out about the CEO search process and what is required to make it successful.

In this episode of Governance Talk*, Pat Mangan talks with Leigh Taylor, NRECA’s director of executive search about the CEO search process.

Video Reference Tools:

CEO Competencies

Should the Board Do Their Own Executive Search?

*You will need to log into your www.cooperative.com account to view the video.

WECA BOARD MEETING SUMMARY

The WECA Board of Directors met on Tuesday, January 17, 2023 in Rosholt (Central Wisconsin Electric Cooperative). Click the link below for a summary of the meeting activities.