Idaho Falls Utility Board Meetings

November 10, 2021 The Idaho Falls Power Board of the City of Idaho Falls met Wednesday, Nov. 10, 2021, at the Idaho Falls Power Energy Center, 140 S. Capital, Idaho Falls, Idaho at 7:00 a.m. Call to Order, Roll Call, and Announcements: There were present: Mayor Rebecca L. Noah Casper (arrived at 7:05 a.m.) Board Member Thomas Hally Board Member Jim Francis Board Member Jim Freeman Board Member Lisa Burtenshaw (arrived at 7:05 a.m.) Board Member John Radford Absent: Board Member Michelle Ziel-Dingman Also present: Bear Prairie, Idaho Falls Power (IFP) General Manager Stephen Boorman, IFP Assistant General Manager Michael Kirkham, Assistant City Attorney (left at 8:39 a.m.) Will Mathews, Business Analyst Wid Ritchie, Energy Services Manager Joelyn Hansen, Lead Customer Service Representative Randy Fife, City Attorney (arrived at 8:39 a.m.) Linda Lundquist, IFP Board Secretary Board Member Hally called the meeting to order at 7:03 a.m. Board Member Updates and Announcements Board Member Radford gave an American Public Power Associations’ (APPA) Policy Makers Council report. He apologized for any discomfort he may have caused in October’s Board meeting discussion and added that he is fully confident in the utility’s General Manager (GM) Prairie. There was a lengthy conversation around tax credits in the proposed Infrastructure Bill in the U.S. Congress. GM Prairie commented on supply chain issues’ impact on the delivery of residential transformers and that they may be two years behind for certain types but noted the utility has had a large annual order placed since March 2021. He pointed out that while the bill may be putting money into roads, bridges, etc., there is already labor and material shortages. Calendar Updates and Announcements Mayor Casper announced there will be more calendar information and dates available at the next City Council meeting. She added that City Council work sessions are filling up for 2022. GM Prairie explained that there will be additional spending requests for the fiber expansion in the Nov. 10 City Council meeting. He also asked the Board to review the resolution language prior to the Nov. 23 City Council meeting and provide feedback if there are any language updates. He explained the utility’s commercial and new large single load rate structures as it pertains to the resolutions. Mayor Casper said she would review whereas clauses particular to “job creation” and Board Member Hally commented that the packing plant may have supply chain issues. Board Policy No. 3 / Board Training Plan 1  November 10, 2021 GM Prairie said he tweaked the policy language some and reminded the Board about scheduling issues and the quorum required for trainings. Board Member Radford reminded the Board that Mr. Kirkham is gaining clarification around the issue from the state attorney general’s office. Board Member Francis said he needed more time to review the policy language. Action will be tabled until the next meeting to allow for further review. Board Member Hally asked if the current annual report was available, and GM Prairie said it could be found in the board book and online. GM Prairie said for future policy review that he would send out redlined versions requesting feedback ahead of Board packets and meetings. Survey Questions and Board Review Process Board Member Radford said the purpose of the survey questions as he understands it is to help the Board understand the meaning of the Board and the duties of its members. There was a lengthy discussion on certain questions and some questions about their relevancy to this Board. GM Prairie asked to Board to send their feedback by Dec. 1 so that when he and the liaisons meet in December, they can do a final review in order to get the survey deployed by mid-December. Mr. Kirkham suggested that the Board should think about questions and responses and how that information gets memorialized. 2021 Customer Satisfaction Survey GM Prairie spoke about the difficulty in finding a service that produces useful and statistically valid results. He explained how random polling surveys of this type are costly and pointed out that historically, the sampling and process hasn’t been ideal for the utility. Mr. Williams compared the dataset conversion rates, frequency and pricing of the old versus the new polling methods/firms and pointed out that the utility is now getting improved datasets, more often and at a fraction of the cost. Mr. Ritchie reviewed the survey highlights and pointed out that IFP scored a 97% satisfaction rate as an electric service provider. Board Member Freeman mentioned that customers often think their entire bill is only for electricity and they don’t realize that water and sewer are also included. Ms. Hansen said that utility customer service is focusing on education through the website and direct contact so that customers understand how their rates are determined and how best to read and understand their bills. There was a discussion on how customers receive their bills and various payment options and GM Prairie pointed out that a prepay option is still in the works. There was a discussion on how to integrate the outage, mapping, billing, and communication software systems with power and public works. Mayor Casper asked about surveying customers about green or clean energy and GM Prairie said that Mr. Mathews is working to survey a focus group on preferred generation resources, affordability, reliability, emissions profile, etc. He offered that Idaho Power recently surveyed their customers and the survey indicated that while customers preferred clean energy, they generally weren’t willing to pay higher rates. He reiterated that the utility needs to have the proper tools and technology to deliver what customers want. Peaking Plant / Clean Energy Plants / Utility Operations GM Prairie reviewed the load and resource balance slides and summarized that loads and the city are growing and added that customers are putting in gas heat but noted that electric vehicles (EV) will trend the electric industry back up. Assistant General Manager (AGM) Boorman added that he is seeing a large number of apartments coming into the system and noted that many have electric heating. Board Member Francis asked if Heber and Lehi City have similar buying times to IFP and GM Prairie said they do but pointed out they are not in the SLICE/Columbia Basin system and have to rely more on the market. GM Prairie noted that Lehi is summer peaking while IFP is winter so there is some advantage to swap resource times with them. He added that even in a good water year, Idaho Falls isn’t self-sufficient and relies significantly on the market for peak hourly purchase in the summer and winter months. Board Member Hally asked what the mid-Columbia pricing was from December to February and GM Prairie said on average about $140 or $0.14 cents per megawatt hour (MWh). Board Member Burtenshaw asked what the 2  November 10, 2021 pricing needed to be to break even, and GM Prairie said that anything purchased over $40 MWh puts upward pressure on IFP rates and added that historically, high prices have helped the city because surplus energy gets sold back into the market. The problem he stated now is that the non-peak hours of the day in the market are low priced while the few peak hours of the day are extremely high with all the solar and wind being intermittent resources. He continued to say that utilities are opting into resource adequacy programs. Board Member Radford asked what IFP’s entire internal generation capacity was, and GM Prairie said if everything is running, about 48 megawatts (MW) peak in the spring and the utility peaks in the winter around 145 megawatts and summer around 125. GM Prairie reviewed the timeline of the peaking plant land purchase and said that he is working on a memo of understanding (MOU) for Lehi and Heber Cities and will share with the Board when it’s available. Mr. Fife said that even if someone recuses, that Council Member still counts in the quorum. Board Member Hally asked if the partnership is an equal split and GM Prairie said that is the initial base concept. Board Member Francis asked when the MOU converts to a power sales contract and GM Prairie said the contract is currently being drafted and edited and will be much later in the process after a request for proposal (RFP) is done and received back with pricing and details. GM Prairie went on to reiterate that nothing is final or done because the RFP solicitation will be the time that the decisions will be made to proceed or not based upon costs and project dynamics received back from bidders. He continued to say that that City Council would have ample opportunity as we continue to review, refine and investigate if this is the best path forward. Mayor Casper passed out a draft questionnaire for review with prospectus contents that she would expect would be addressed in the contract and/or resolution drafting process. Electric Vehicles Mayor Casper stated that funding for Walmart’s Electrify America came from the Volkswagen settlement and pointed out the Tesla charging stations are only for Tesla vehicles. Board Member Freeman asked if there are adaptors available for station plugs and Mayor Casper said no, not as yet and added that there may come a time when Tesla will standardize. Board Member Hally added that standardization could come through tax credits. GM Prairie explained the different types of plugs and levels of charging stations. Mayor Casper asked what the approximate cost was to install a 240 ampere (amp) home charging station if it had to be inspected and is does IFP offer financial assistance. GM Prairie said the costs are likely around $500 and that IFP doesn’t currently offer financial assistance. Mr. Fife explained that an Idaho homeowner can perform any electrical or plumbing on their premises without a license but would need to pull a city permit. Board Member Burtenshaw commented that big petrol companies are likely going to get onboard and turn up in stores, restaurants and other places people gather. GM Prairie detailed the current charging stations in place in Idaho Falls and mentioned the best financial value is to charge at home and feels hotels will start adding charging stations. He added that no electric distribution feeders in town are near capacity and noted that access is not a limiting factor for a pay-for charging station. He reviewed a U.S. map and explained how Idaho is behind the curve in EV adoption, likely due to factors like; how rural Idaho tends to be, Idahoans driving long distances with less commute times, Idahoans typically prefer four-wheel drive vehicles, cold weather limitations on battery performance, and state subsidies/mandates being lower. Mayor Casper said the map puts her at ease. GM Prairie said the cost is about $23,000 to put in a back-to-back charging station downtown and added that the focus should be on customer needs and potentially partnering with local dealerships. Board Member Radford said he agreed and if there is federal money available that we should be in a place to take advantage. GM Prairie said he would welcome and be ready if external funding opportunities arise. There was a discussion about range and range anxiety. Board Member Radford said he agreed there’s range anxiety and stated that if his employer were to offer free charging then he would charge at work. GM Prairie directed the Board to read more about wind and solar in the packet. He reminded the Board of the upcoming Utah Associated Municipal Systems (UAMPS) and Idaho Consumer- Owned Utilities Association (ICUA) meetings. 3  November 10, 2021 There being no further business, the meeting adjourned at 11:20 a.m. s/ Linda Lundquist s/ Rebecca L. Noah Casper Linda Lundquist, BOARD SECRETARY Rebecca L. Noah Casper, MAYOR 4