[Watchdogs] PEC election season opens [Jodi Lehman, Blanco County News]

[Milton Hawkins]

Mr. Rodman,

I don't know whether or not you've been to many Board meetings since the
election in June, but if you have, as I have, you've seen for yourself how
effective Charles Tesar has been in representing the interests of the
member/owners.  He has pressed for reforms across the board.  He has been an
able and consistent advocate for transparency and openness.  He has pushed
for full disclosure of past wrongdoing, and he has fought to limit the use
of executive sessions to consider issues that members should hear debated.

He joined Patrick Cox in trying to limit the compensation of directors, and
he has done all an advisory director could do to improve the operational
efficiency of our cooperative.

I think you would be proud of your vote for him if you took the time to
consider his contributions on behalf of us member/owners.

And when was the last time you heard of an elected official anywhere who
aggressively advocated the abolition of his own position?  Charles Tesar has
done this, publicly and repeatedly, and I believe he deserves considerable
credit of putting the welfare of the cooperative above his own.

Vote for someone else if you like, but let's get all the facts, evaluate
them fairly, and give credit where credit is due.

Best regards,

Milton


-----Original Message-----
From: Dale Rodman [mailto:darodman at zeecon.com] 
Sent: Thursday, February 12, 2009 5:37 PM
To: 'Tesar, Charles'; 'Milton Hawkins'; watchdogs at pec4u.org
Cc: 'Patrick Cox'
Subject: RE: [Watchdogs] PEC election season opens [Jodi Lehman,Blanco
County News]

Last year I met you at a couple of PEC meetings.  Based on that and your
platform I voted for you for the advisory position.   

Issues like the PEC history and hidden organizations are like icebergs.
Only 10% of the problem is visible and there is usually 90% unseen problems
below the surface, which sooner or later come to surface.  Many people were
well aware of these potential problems and the time required to work on
them.

Our present elected officials, across the board in all locations, federal,
state and local, continue to fail to live up to their campaign promises.
Once elected they quickly forget what they promised.  I remember you stating
you would not take compensation.  Last years campaign had many candidates,
many of which were running for the money and the perks.  The platforms were
one of the few tools available to help identify these candidates.  The large
number of candidates made it difficult for voters to identify the good
candidates.  Who can we trust to do what they promise to do?  Compensation
was a huge issue last election.  If you were going to take it you should
have told the voters that was your intent.

I am sorry to hear about your economic situation and I thank you for the
time spent but none of this changes the basic issues that voters trusted you
to do.  One was not to take compensation to do the job.  By taking the
compensation and now trying to justify it, further destroys any trust you
might have left.    

The next few years will continue to require a large number of hours of work
from our board members.  



-----Original Message-----
From: Tesar, Charles [mailto:charles.tesar at peci.com] 
Sent: Thursday, February 12, 2009 10:35 AM
To: Dale Rodman; 'Milton Hawkins'; watchdogs at pec4u.org
Cc: 'Patrick Cox'
Subject: RE: [Watchdogs] PEC election season opens [Jodi Lehman,Blanco
County News]

Mr. Rodman,

Your point is correct; that, along with a host of other measures, was a
campaign platform. 

The promise was based on the expectation that I would devote some 20-25
hours a month on PEC business, and that such an effort should be part of my
community service. But I had no idea of how profound the problems, nor the
amount of work that would be required to move PEC towards a more reformed
and responsive organization. Since being elected in June, I have spent the
better part of 120-150 hours a month dealing with issues of transparency,
accountability, management problems, legislative issues and restoring
integrity to board behavior. In December alone, I clocked more than 250
hours with PEC issues.

Although I lacked voting rights as an advisory member, I was in support of a
major reduction in Board pay, sponsored provisions for renewables and
conservation, and was outspoken in the the need to eliminate the 10 advisory
positions (including my own)--all of which has come to reality. I have been
especially aggressive in holding incumbent Board members to account for
failures of fiduciary obligations and conflicts of interest.

But the question you raise is about accepting pay for PEC work. I am
actively employed as an international consultant, but have received no
income save for the $1500 per month and $750 per PEC meeting since my
election. In order to carry out my obligations to PEC, I have had to forgo a
number of work assignments, at no small loss of income. It is only in the
last month that I've been able to return to my work abroad, although I will
continue my involvement with restoring integrity and better management
practices to PEC until my advisory position expires in June. 

I do plan to seek election for the District 6 Board position.  My platform
is simple:  represent the member owners on a reformed board that insists on
accountability, ethical behavior, efficient and effective management, and a
mix of energy options that advance renewables and conservation, but at the
lowest possible cost to members.  

If this explanation fails to address your concerns, Mr. Rodman, I'm certain
that there will be other candidates you would prefer to support.

Respectfully,

Charles Tesar
________________________________________
From: Dale Rodman [darodman at zeecon.com]
Sent: Wednesday, February 11, 2009 9:04 PM
To: 'Milton Hawkins'; watchdogs at pec4u.org
Cc: 'Patrick Cox'; Tesar, Charles
Subject: RE: [Watchdogs] PEC election season opens [Jodi Lehman,Blanco
County News]

Last year Charles Tesar ran on a platform that he would take no compensation
from the PEC.  Has he lived up to his campaign promise?

________________________________
From: watchdogs-bounces at pec4u.org [mailto:watchdogs-bounces at pec4u.org] On
Behalf Of Milton Hawkins
Sent: Wednesday, February 11, 2009 4:10 PM
To: watchdogs at pec4u.org
Cc: 'Patrick Cox'; Charles Tesar
Subject: [Watchdogs] PEC election season opens [Jodi Lehman,Blanco County
News]

[Patrick Cox and Charles Tesar have proven themselves to be effective
advocates for reform and deserve to be returned to the Board.  And remember,
as Ms. Lehman makes clear below, that each PEC member can vote for a
candidate for each of the three open seats.  -  Milton]

PEC election season
opens<http://www.blancocountynews.com/news/article/11855>
By Jodi Lehman
February 11, 2009<http://www.blancocountynews.com/news/issue/2009-02-11>

Three of the seven seats on the Pedernales Electric Cooperative Board of
Directors are up for election this spring. On Monday, incumbent Director
Patrick Cox of Wimberley announced he will seek re-election to the District
7 seat.

Since being elected last year to fill the unexpired District 7 term of
former board president Bud Burnett encompassing the Kyle and Buda area, Cox
has been a leader in seeking reforms at PEC. Cox said he is "seeking
reelection to further the achievements of the past year" and will "continue
efforts to eliminate unnecessary expense and wasteful practices while
providing accountability and transparency."

Besides District 7, positions up for election in 2009 are for District 1,
encompassing the cities of Marble Falls, Burnet and Bertram, and District 6,
which includes part of the City of Blanco and a large area extending
southeast from Blanco. District 1 incumbent Vi Cloud of Marble Falls and
District 6 incumbent Val Smith of Blanco did not return calls asking about
their plans to seek re-election. Smith has served on the PEC board since
1983 and Cloud has served as a director since 1994.

The PEC Board of Directors amended the cooperative's bylaws last month to
eliminate all advisory director positions as of June 2009. Dr. Charles Tesar
of Blanco was elected as advisory director from District 6 last year and
championed the elimination of advisory director positions, including his
own, since he viewed the non-voting positions as "at best ceremonial."

In response to this reporter's inquiry on Monday, Tesar said he will run for
the District 6 director position. "If elected to the voting post, I will
continue my aggressive posture in ferreting out wrong-doing, fostering
improvements in PEC performance, and supporting innovations in energy
procurement and conservation."

Candidates must reside in the district they are running in, but voting will
be at-large again for this election cycle. Each PEC member will be able to
cast one vote in each of the races, regardless of the number of meters owned
by the member. In past years, a member could cast a vote for each meter in
co-op elections.

PEC has made nomination-by-petition materials available on its web site,
www.pec.coop, for members interested in running for a position on the
utility's board of directors. Members may also call PEC toll-free at
1-888-554-4732 to have the petition materials mailed to them, or they can
drop by any Pedernales Electric office to request the forms in person.

The materials include instructions for submitting biographical information,
nomination requirements, a background verification authorization form,
sheets for collecting member signatures and a map showing the recently
revised director districts.

PEC Communications Manager Anne Harvey explained that the district
boundaries do not always coincide with city or county boundaries, and often
follow physical and geographic landmarks such as major roads and rivers.
Part of the City of Blanco is in District 5 and part is in District 6.
Harvey said members who wish to run for a director position and are
uncertain of their district should call PEC for more information.

Completed nomination petitions must be postmarked or received by PEC by
April 6 for candidates to be eligible for the election, which will conclude
at the cooperative's June 20 annual membership meeting. Incumbent directors
seeking re-election are required to complete the petition process.

"Last year's election demonstrated our desire to have open and democratic
elections, and the participation from the membership was wonderful," said
PEC General Manager Juan Garza. "Our commitment to democracy remains true
for 2009, and we believe our nomination procedure for directors is one of
the most open processes in the country."

PEC plans to mail ballots to PEC members in May. As in 2008, PEC has hired
Election Services Corporation, an independent election services provider, to
distribute, receive and tabulate ballots and handle other election matters.
PEC members will be able to vote for the candidates of their choosing by
mail, online or in person at the annual meeting.
Copyright 2009 Blanco County News
E-mail: news at blanconews.com<mailto:news at blanconews.com>news at blanconews
dot com . Phone: (830) 833-4812 . Fax: (830) 833-4246

Milton Hawkins    830-868-9075