REGULAR BOARD MEETING
December 30, 2024
The Regular Meeting of the Board of Trustees of Newberry Electric Cooperative, Inc. was held at Newberry Electric Cooperative, Inc., located in Newberry County, State of South Carolina, on Monday, December 30, 2024.
Chairman Johnnie L. Dickert called the meeting to order at 6:30 p.m., followed by Trustee Douglas E. Hipp’s invocation, with the determination of a quorum present.
The secretary reported that the following Board Members were present:
Barbara C. Bishop Leon Fulmer, Jr. J. Craig Kesler
M. Blake Brigman Melanie B. Hawkins William Lominick, Sr.
Johnnie L. Dickert Douglas E. Hipp John W. Nichols
President and CEO G. Keith Avery, Attorney Thomas H. Pope, III, and Executive Secretary Tara Chapman were also present.
The Board dispensed with the reading of the minutes of the November 2024 Regular Board Meeting held on November 25, 2024. Trustee Hipp made a motion to accept the minutes with corrections to the meeting dates. The motion was seconded and approved.
The Board dispensed with the reading of the minutes from the Special Board Meeting Held on December 19, 2024. Trustee Hipp made a motion to approve the minutes as emailed. The motion was seconded and passed without opposition.
Committee Chairman John W. Nichols reported that the Finance Committee held its regular meeting on Monday, December 23, 2024, at 6:30 p.m. The Committee members are Trustees Johnnie L. Dickert, J. Craig Kesler, William Lominick, Sr., and John W. Nichols. All were present, along with President and CEO Avery.
Chairman Nichols reported that the Finance Committee reviewed the cash disbursements for November 2024. All expenditures were found to be in order, and the committee is presenting this report as general information. The consensus of the board was to accept the report.
Attorney Thomas H. Pope, III, did not request an Executive Session.
President and CEO Avery reviewed the functions and activities he attended in December. He noted that during the Carolina Connect Board of Trustees meeting on December 23, 2024, he was appointed Chairman of the Board.
President and CEO Avery reviewed the operational data for December 2024 in detail. The amount of write offs for November 2024 is $3,446.28. Trustee Brigman made a motion to accept this amount. The motion was seconded and passed unanimously.
President and CEO Avery reviewed the Engineering and Operations reports and the Operational Support reports for the month. He noted that infrared testing was conducted at all substations. Critical issues were discovered and resolved during this testing at the Newberry and Riley Road Substations.
The Hurricane Helene Hazard assessments conducted by Booth and Associates and the pole and equipment cleanup are ongoing. The electric line on Ira Kinard Road has relocated to the highway, and the electrical feed has been put back to normal. This was done with the help of Groves Electric, who has been assisting with the Hurricane Helene work orders. Lee Electric’s overhead crew is still assisting with Hurricane Helene work orders, which include pole changeouts and large new construction jobs.
Trane line relocation has been completed for their parking lot expansion that they had done. Metal Masters has finished their solar installation, and their solar connection agreement has been handled through Central Electric Cooperative, Inc. Truck 515 is being replaced and is scheduled to be delivered in January. The fuel pump on Truck 976 was replaced. Truck 21's transmission had to be repaired because of a broken hose.
Amy Sease attended CSR and OMS dispatch training. Leann Hutto completed Project Envoy training offered by Santee Cooper. Carla Boozer participated in ECSC’s Manager training. The Compliance Audit and the Federated Insurance Audit have been completed. Annual hearing and audiogram screenings, performed by Henderson and Associates, were conducted as scheduled.
In November 2024, a total of twenty eight meters were set for new construction services. Also, Carolina Connect reported that 6,533 active accounts were billed for the month.
President and CEO Avery reminded the Trustees of the NRECA Directors Conference on January 26-28, 2025.
President and CEO Avery reminded the Trustees that the Legislative Luncheon and Co-op Day will be held on February 13, 2025. Seven trustees are planning to attend the event.
President and CEO Avery reminded the Board that the NRECA PowerXchange conference will be held March 7-12, 2025. Six Trustees plan on attending the conference.
President and CEO Avery reviewed the results of the ORS compensation and benefits compliance examination. ORS states that Newberry Electric Cooperative, Inc. is in compliance with the S.C. Code 33-49-615 and 33-49-630(A).
The Cee-us Board Meeting Highlights from December 10, 2024, were accepted as information.
Central Electric Power Cooperative, Inc. December 11, 2024 Special Board Meeting and the Central Electric Power Cooperative, Inc. December 11, 2024 Board Meeting summaries were accepted as information.
President and CEO Avery informed the Board that it was time to renew the South Carolina Living magazine subscription and that the membership classification would need to be determined. Trustee Hipp made a motion to continue with an annual subscription for the cooperative’s members to receive all of the South Carolina Living Magazine issues for the year. The motion was seconded and passed without opposition.
President and CEO Avery informed the Trustees that Newberry Electric Cooperative, Inc.’s 2025 Annual Meeting will be held at Mid Carolina High School on April 16, 2025, from 12:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. Trustees Douglas Hipp, Johnnie L. Dickert, and James Craig Kesler are up for reelection for the Board of Trustee this year and will be running for reelection at the 2025 Annual Meeting. As of now, there is no contested race.
President and CEO Avery informed the Board that a Nominating Committee needs to be appointed to make nominations for the election of the Board of Trustees. Trustees Hipp, Kesler, and Dickert recused themselves from voting on appointing members to the Nominating Committee because of the conflict of interest. The consensus of the Board was to appoint the same committee members from the 2024 Nominating Committee. The committee members are Mr. Paul Brown, Mr. Lee Shaw, Mr. Rick Farmer, Mrs. Ann Lominick, Mrs. Jennifer Moore, Mr. Randy Nobles, and Mr. Wayne Satterwhite. Executive Secretary Tara Chapman will check with the committee members to confirm they can serve.
President and CEO Avery also reminded the Trustees that the Credentials and Elections Committee would need to be appointed. Due to the conflict of interest, Trustees Douglas Hipp, Johnnie L. Dickert, and James Craig Kesler recused themselves from the vote on appointing the Credentials and Election Committee members since they are running for reelection. The consensus of the Board of Trustees was to use the same committee members from the 2024 Credentials and Elections Committee. The members are Mr. Robert Bannister, Mrs. Annette Bledsoe, Mrs. Penny Hamm, Mr. Don Kunkle, Mr. Anthony Matthews, Mr. George Piersol, and Mr. Carold Wicker. Executive Assistant Tara Chapman will check with the committee members to see if they can serve.
President and CEO Avery informed the Trustees of the donation request that had been received from NRECA International, which requested a donation to support Productive Uses of Electricity (PUE) programs. Trustee Kesler made a motion to contribute. The motion was seconded and passed with a unanimous vote.
President and CEO notified the Board that the South Carolina Lineman’s Rodeo would occur at York Electric Cooperative on March 21-22, 2025.
President and CEO Informed the Trustees that the 2025 Legislative Conference will be held on April 27-30, 2025. Five Trustees expressed interest in attending.
President and CEO Avery informed the Board that the ECSC Trustee Association Conference will be held May 7-9, 2025. Nine Trustees expressed interest in attending the event.
President and CEO Avery informed the Board that the ECSC Summer Conference will be held on June 2-4, 2025. Nine Trustees expressed interest in attending the conference.
President and CEO Avery notified the Board that Lee Electrical Construction, LLC has invited the Board of Trustees to a Dinner on March 9, 2025, which will take place during the PowerXchange Conference.
President and CEO Avery informed the Board of the thank you letter from the Newberry County Literacy Council for the donation made by Newberry Electric Cooperative, Inc. in November.
President and CEO Avery presented proposed rate changes to the Board. After much discussion, a motion was made by Trustee Hipp to approve these changes, which was then seconded and approved by the Board.
The next regular board meeting will be held on Thursday, January 27, 2025.
With no further business and without objections, Chairman Johnnie L. Dickert adjourned the December 30, 2024, Regular Board Meeting at 8:07 p.m.
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SECRETARY APPROVED
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