FMPA Weekly
A weekly e-newsletter for FMPA members
March 24, 2014
LAST WEEK
Cane Island Unit 2
Cane Island Unit 2 was taken offline last week for a scheduled maintenance outage. Unit 2 is scheduled to come back online Saturday. Contact: David Schumann
Operating and Planning Audit
The Florida Reliability Coordinating Council (FRCC) reported no violations were found in its audit of FMPA’s operations and planning related to mandatory reliability standards. The scope of the audit included FMPA’s operations and planning for bulk electric system assets, including: 1) Cane Island Units 1, 2, 3 and 4, 2) Treasure Coast Energy Center Unit 1, 3) North Bay Substation 5, and 4) the Special Protection System. Contact: Frank Gaffney
FRCC Standing Committees
FMPA staff and members participating in Florida Reliability Coordinating Council (FRCC) Standing Committees met last Friday to discuss the interdependencies of FRCC and its members’ operations, planning and compliance. The meeting was a recommendation by Kissimmee Utility Authority Vice President of System Compliance and Operations Greg Woessner to facilitate communication between FMPA and its members in preparation for FRCC committee meetings. The group plans to meet the third Friday of each month at 9 a.m. via conference call. Contact: Frank Gaffney
Foster Named Leesburg Director of Electric
Leesburg City Manager Al Miner named Patrick Foster the new Electric Director. Patrick replaces Paul Kalv, who retired in January. Contact: Nick Guarriello
FMPA.com Redesign
Members of FMPA’s Public Relations and Information Technology departments met last Friday to kick-off planning a redesign of FMPA.com. The current version of FMPA’s public website is nearly five years old. FMPA plans to update the site’s technology to provide improved site security, enhanced site features, usability for smartphone and tablet users, as well as a refreshed design and content. Public Relations and Information Technology plan to schedule a meeting in the near future to solicit feedback from other employees that are frequent contributors to or users of the site. Contact: Mark McCain or Luis Cruz
THIS WEEK
Excellence as a Supervisor
FMPA hosts the third module of Excellence as a Supervisor on Tuesday and Wednesday at FMPA’s Orlando office. This training program is available to FMPA members as part of the alliance between FMPA and Electric Cities of Georgia (ECG). The training is designed to provide supervisors or prospective supervisors with the skills necessary to be effective leaders. The program is open to utility and city employees. Contact: Sharon Smeenk
Pole Attachment Agreements
FMPA’s Member Services Department hosts a conference call Thursday at 9:30 a.m. to discuss pole attachment agreements with telecoms, cable companies and other pole attachers. Discussion topics will include: 1) identification of potential contacts, 2) pending renewal dates, 3) initial review of the model agreements, and 4) next steps. Contact: Sharon Smeenk
Conservation and Renewable Energy Advisory Committee
FMPA’s Conservation and Renewable Energy Advisory Committee meets Thursday at 2 p.m. via conference call to discuss the approval of the fiscal 2015 funding allocation for the All-Requirements Project’s Conservation Program. Participants will also discuss information items including: 1) solar community project concepts, and 2) electric vehicles. The full agenda package is available on the Member Portal. Contact: Michele Jackson
All-Requirements Project Weekly Load Statistics
The weekly update of the All-Requirements Project historical load graph has been posted on the Member Portal. The graph is updated through March 23. Contact: Jim Atz
Special Dates
Congratulations to Andrei Benjamin, who celebrates one year with FMPA on Thursday, March 27.
Congratulations to Rick Minch, who celebrates four years with FMPA on Saturday, March 29.
COMING UP
Florida Legislative Rally
The Florida Municipal Electric Association’s (FMEA) Legislative Rally, scheduled for March 31 and April 1 in Tallahassee, is a great way for members to meet with state representatives to discuss electric industry issues and the impact of pending legislation. Visit Registrationhttp://fmpa.com/index.php/component/registrationpro/?view=event&did=37>Registration; is requested, and lunch will be provided. Contact: Sharon Samuels
Energy Auditor Roundtable
FMPA will hold an Energy Auditor Roundtable at JEA on May 22 at 10 a.m. This semi-annual roundtable provides a forum for participants to discuss topics such as work procedures, equipment and materials, site-specific issues and industry changes. http://fmpa.com/index.php/component/registrationpro/?view=event&did=22>Registration; is requested, and lunch will be provided. Contact: Sharon Samuels
INDUSTRY NEWS
Mayfield’s HB 813 Rejected by Energy and Utilities Subcommittee
Rep. Debbie Mayfield’s (R-Vero Beach) proposed House Bill 813 to regulate municipal water and wastewater utilities was rejected last Tuesday by the House Energy and Utilities Subcommittee. The bill would have made all municipal water and wastewater utilities that serve any customers outside city limits subject to Florida Public Service Commission regulation. In addition, the bill includes provisions that would enable a county to take over service to customers outside the incorporated area at “fair market value. In the Subcommittee, the bill failed on a vote of 6-8. After the vote, a member of the Subcommittee made a motion to reconsider the vote. According to rules of the House of Representatives, this effectively negates the vote and moves it into the category of “Temporarily Postponed. Though the Subcommittee could reconsider its vote, it is not considered likely. This week, the House Energy and Utilities Subcommittee will most likely have its final meeting of the session, and this bill is not on its agenda. There was no action last week on any of Rep. Mayfield’s other bills involving municipal electric utilities.
FMPA Weekly is published by FMPA for employees and goveing boards of FMPA member utilities. Questions or comments about this newsletter may be directed to Ryan Dumas or Ashley Pawlik in FMPA’s Public Relations Department.
Want more background on the names and terms used in this newsletter? Check out FMPA’s Glossary, which features some of the most frequently mentioned committees, companies, places and terms, or contact the person named in each FMPA story to lea more. (Click here for the Staff Directory.)
Have a question, comment or story idea for the newsletter? FMPA welcomes your feedback at any time. Contact: Ryan Dumas or Ashley Pawlik
Florida Municipal Power Agency
8553 Commodity Circle
Orlando, FL 32819-9002
Tel 407 355-7767
Fax 407 355-5794
http://www.fmpa.com>www.fmpa.com
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