Grant PUD commissioner provides clarification about rate increases

Recently there was a letter to the editor that indicated all PUD commissioners supported the recent increased power rates. My voting record does not support that. In 2012, the commission worked on a new rate resolution which would protect Grant County core power users (residential, commercial, irrigation and small industry) from the impacts of large industrial power users. This would be done by taking Priest Rapids and Wanapum power away from the large industrial users as the core Grant County power users needs grow. This would result in the large industrials getting less of Priest Rapids and Wanapum power. They would need to pay for the extra power they use independently from the core users.

This policy would make sure that the core users would always have access to affordable electricity from Priest Rapids and Wanapum generation for the county's growth and expansion far into the future. As the core users needed more, the large industries users would get less. The commission constructively worked together drafting this policy (Resolution 8231). In 2012 it was unanimously passed which I supported and still do today, as it protected the historical power rates that we have had for over 50 years. However, this policy was superseded in 2013 by Resolution 8698 which I was the sole opposing vote against and superseded again in 2014 by Resolution 8751. Again, I was the sole vote against.

There has been a lot of discussion about the various costs of service studies. I have seen these go all over the place and they have been inconsistent. However, the large industrial power users (specifically Microsoft) have focused on the most recent cost of service study to justify a lower cost of power for them at everyone else's expenses. My issue is that they came here knowing what our rates were, the history of the cost of service studies and our historical power rates. Now that they are here, they are dictating to us that they need a better deal yet. This has resulted in the current electric rate trending, which I take exception to and did not support in 2013 or recently in 2014. From my perspective this rate trending is not good for Grant County as it does not reflect the historical power rates that we have had for over 50 years, which has been so important to our local economy.

Grant PUD Commissioner Tom Flint

Ephrata