Nov 13, 2023 Electric Utility Commission

[00:00:01]

OKAY, THIS IS THE

[CALL MEETING TO ORDER]

UM, WHY DON'T WE CALL THE MEETING TO ORDER ANY

[PUBLIC COMMUNICATION: GENERAL]

THE FIRST IS DALE BULA.

GOOD EVENING COMMISSIONERS.

MY NAME IS DALE BULA, AND I WANTED TO TALK ABOUT MY, ONE OF MY PET PEEVES.

I KNOW YOU'VE HEARD MANY OF THEM.

UH, THE FAYETTE COAL PLANT, UH, OUR CITY TRIES TO SHOW ITSELF AS A GREEN CITY, BUT WE CAN'T BE SUSTAINABLE AS LONG AS WE BURN FILTHY DIRTY COAL.

WE SHOULD NOT KEEP CONTRIBUTING TO OUR CLIMATE CRISIS WITH YEARS OF BROKEN PROMISES.

IT'S TIME NOW TO GET SERIOUS ABOUT CLOSING THE FAYETTE COAL PLANT, AT LEAST OUR SHARE OF IT.

OUR CITY COUNCIL IS THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS FOR AUSTIN ENERGY, AND THE WRITING ON THE WALL TELLS US THAT WE ARE RUNNING OUTTA TIME TO PROTECT OUR ONE AND ONLY PLANET.

WE CAN NO LONGER ACCEPT THAT THE PUBLIC HAS NO RIGHT TO KNOW ABOUT THESE.

SO-CALLED PROPRIETARY NEGOTIATIONS ON THE PLANT CLOSURE.

WE HAVE HEARD LOTS OF STATISTICS ABOUT THE AMOUNT OF POLLUTION THAT FADE EMITS.

WE CAN NO LONGER ALLOW OUR CITIZENS TO BREATHE THIS TOXIC AIR JUST TO RE PROFITS FROM RUNNING THIS POLLUTING PLANT FOR A FEW EXTRA DOLLARS DURING AN ENERGY SHORTFALL, WE NEED TO STOP APPROVING BUDGETS THAT MAKE OUR RATE PAYERS AND OTHERS SICK.

OUR CITY COUNCIL SHOULD DIRECT AUSTIN ENERGY TO RUN FAYETTE ONLY AT ITS LOWEST LEVEL ALLOWED BY CONTRACT.

OUR CITY COUNCIL SHOULD DIRECT AUSTIN ENERGY TO RUN FAYETTE.

UH, SORRY.

OUR CITY COUNCIL SHOULD DIRECT AUSTIN ENERGY TO SPREAD THE COST OF CLOSURE OVER A PERIOD OF TIME, LIKE 20 OR 30 YEARS OR SO IF NECESSARY.

AND SEPARATE FAYETTE EXPENSES THAT AREN'T SUBJECT TO CITY COUNCIL VOTES.

THE FAYETTE MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE SETS ANNUAL BUDGETS AND CAPITAL EXPENDITURES, BUT THEY ARE ALL BURIED IN THE AUSTIN ENERGY BUDGET.

AND WE SHOULD STOP SPENDING MONEY ON A PLANT THAT WE WANT TO SHUT DOWN WITH NEW EPA RULES COMING SOON, PROBABLY WE'RE GONNA BE ASKED TO SPEND MILLIONS TO UPGRADE THE FACILITY, AND I THINK WE OUGHT TO BE ABLE TO DO BETTER THAN THAT.

COME ON, AUSTIN ENERGY, LIVE UP TO YOUR IMAGE OF A PLANET SAVING GREEN UTILITY, AND DO YOUR PART TO SHUT THIS PLANT DOWN.

THANK YOU.

THE NEXT SPEAKER IS SHANE JOHNSON.

ALL RIGHT.

GOOD AFTERNOON, EVENING EVERYONE.

SHANE JOHNSON, HE, HIM PRONOUNS.

I'M A RESIDENT OF DIS DISTRICT SEVEN AND HERE SPEAKING TODAY AS A SIERRA CLUB STAFF MEMBER.

UM, I WANT TO REMIND AND EMPHASIZE THAT THE CLIMATE CRISIS IS ALREADY UPON US.

UM, WE CANNOT WAIT UNTIL 2035 TO FULLY FULFILL OUR OVERDUE COMMITMENT TO CLOSE FAYETTE AND TO SHUT DOWN OUR GAS PLANTS.

SO I'M ASK HERE TO ASK YOU TODAY TO PLEASE COMMIT TO A GOAL OF GOING CARBON FREE BY 2030, UM, INCLUDING RETIRING OUR GAS PLANTS BY 2030 OR SOONER.

ADDITIONALLY, I WANT TO EMPHASIZE THAT TO COMMIT TO ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE AND THE EQUITY SIDE OF THE CLIMATE EQUITY PLAN THAT THE CITY PASSED AUSTIN ENERGY MUST ALSO COMMIT TO NO NEW POWER PLANTS BASED ON COMBUSTION THAT PUT CARBON AND TOXIC POLLUTION INTO THE AIR.

THIS MEANS WE WILL NOT, OR WE SHOULD NOT, AND WE NEED YOU TO COMMIT TO NOT BUILDING ANY NEW POWER PLANTS THAT BURN A MIXTURE OF GAS AND HYDROGEN.

AS SOME ARE OUTLINED IN THIS PLAN, UH, OR THAT BURN SOLELY HYDROGEN, UH, YOU CAN FIND A PRETTY ACCESSIBLE EDF REPORT ABOUT HOW HOW MUCH TOXIC, UH, OZONE AND NOX POLLUTION COMES FROM COMBUSTING HYDROGEN.

UM, WE NEED TO DO THAT FOR OUR LOCAL COMMUNITY, FOR THE PEOPLE OF AUSTIN AND NEARBY COMMU UH, NEARBY AREAS, UH, AND ANY HYDROGEN WE PURSUE MUST BE GREEN HYDROGEN.

WE CANNOT INVEST IN, UH, MORE TERRIBLE, UH, POLLUTING GRAY HYDROGEN FOR WHETHER IT'S AIR, WATER, GROUND POLLUTION THAT ARE POISONING PEOPLE, UH, AND THE PLANET.

UM, ADDITIONALLY, I WANNA EMPHASIZE THAT ALSO FOR THE FIRST TIME, I BELIEVE IN DECADES, UH, OZONE LEVELS IN AUSTIN ARE NOW ABOVE

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AND IT SHOWS THAT WE NEED TO DO EVERYTHING WE CAN TO ADDRESS LOCAL AIR POLLUTION.

UH, AND BURNING HYDROGEN LOCALLY WILL ONLY SEVERELY EXACERBATE THE, THE NOX AND AND OZONE.

UM, AND I THINK ONE LAST THING I'LL, I'LL EMPHASIZE AS WELL THAT I HOPEFULLY ISN'T A PROBLEM, AND WE'RE ALREADY ON THE SAME PAGE, IS TO REAFFIRM OUR COMMITMENT TO NO NEW NUCLEAR POWER.

UH, URANIUM MINING IS EGREGIOUS AND HAS HORRIFYING ENVIRONMENTAL RACISM PROBLEMS AS WELL AS THE GENERAL TOXICITY OF NUCLEAR WASTE.

UM, AND ANOTHER GOAL THAT WE NEED TO, TO FOCUS ON AND ENSURE IS IN THE RESOURCE PLAN, I, I WASN'T ABLE TO REVIEW THE WHOLE MODELING AND PRESENTATION.

UM, BUT WE NEED TO ENSURE THAT THERE ARE SIGNIFICANT OR THERE ARE GOALS FOR SIGNIFICANT INVESTMENTS IN BATTERIES SUCH AS 400 MEGAWATTS BY 2030.

UM, THIS IS ESSENTIAL FOR ON SO MANY LEVELS FROM INVESTING IN CLEAN ENERGY AND, AND REDUCING LOCAL POLLUTION TO ALSO, UH, SUPPORTING LOCAL, UH, DISTRIBUTION GRID RELIABILITY.

SO I HOPE THAT, UM, AUSTIN ENERGY AND THE ELECTRIC UTILITY COMMISSION CAN, CAN SUPPORT, UH, THE COMMUNITY'S NEEDS AND PRIORITIZE ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE AND RACIAL EQUITY IN, IN MEETING THESE GOALS, IN ENSURING THAT THE COMMUNITY VOICE IS CENTERED IN, IN THIS RESOURCE PLAN UPDATE.

THANK YOU.

THE NEXT SPEAKER IS RAFAEL SCHWARTZ.

COULD I AFTERNOON FOLKS? AND THANK YOU FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK.

MY NAME'S RAFAEL SCHWARTZ.

I'M AN ELECTRICAL ENGINEER AND A SOUTH AUSTIN RESIDENT IN CITY COUNCIL DISTRICT TWO.

I'M HERE TODAY OUT OF EXTREME DISAPPOINTMENT THAT OUR CITY OWNED UTILITY HAS FAILED TO LIVE UP TO THE DESIRE OF ITS OWNERS, THE CITY OF AUSTIN, UH, TO RETIRE FAYETTE LAST YEAR.

AND BEYOND THAT, UH, AS YOU ALL KNOW, THAT HAS NOT EVEN PROVIDED THE PUBLIC WITH A FIGURE OF THE COST OF MAKING THAT, UH, RETIREMENT HAPPEN.

UH, NOW AS I'VE LEARNED, AE IS INTENDING TO NOT EVEN MODEL RETIRING THE PLANT FOR ANOTHER 12 YEARS.

UH, IT SEEMS CLEAR THAT FOR WHATEVER REASON, UH, AUSTIN ENERGY IS NOT FULLY COMMITTED TO THE RENEWABLE GOALS, THAT IT OFTEN TELLS THE PUBLIC THAT IT IS.

SO I WANT TO THANK EVERYONE ON THE COMMISSION FOR DOING THE COMPLEX WORK OF MAKING THIS, UH, RENEWABLE TRANSITION HAPPEN IN A DIFFICULT ENVIRONMENT.

UH, WITH THAT IN MIND, I WANT TO ASK THAT, UH, WE CANNOT WAIT UNTIL 2035 TO FULFILL OUR OVERDUE COMMITMENT TO CLOSE THE FAYETTE, UH, PLANT AND SHUT DOWN OUR GAS PLANTS.

PLEASE COMMIT TO A GOAL OF GOING CARBON FREE BY 2030, INCLUDING RETIRING OUR GAS PLANTS BY 2030 OR SOONER.

I ALSO WANT TO ASK THAT, UH, PLEASE COMMIT TO UPGRADING THE TRANSMISSION INFRASTRUCTURE AS SOON AS POSSIBLE IN THIS RESOURCE PLAN UPDATE SO THAT THE TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION SYSTEMS AE UTILIZES ARE ABLE TO TRANSITION OFF OF FOSSIL FUELS BY 2030.

AND THIS MEANS, UH, STARTING THE PLANNING AND UPGRADING TRANSMISSION IN THE NEXT FEW YEARS.

UH, AND UH, THIRDLY, I WANT TO ASK TO COMMIT, UH, THE COMMISSION TO COMMIT TO A GOAL OF HAVING A SIGNIFICANT INVESTMENT IN BATTERIES SUCH AS, UH, FOR EXAMPLE, 400 MEGAWATTS BY 2030, TO ENSURE THAT WE CAN PRIORITIZE INVESTING IN DISPATCHABLE, NON-POLLUTING RESOURCES.

AND FINALLY, UH, TO BEGIN APPLYING REACH TO OUR GAS PLANTS AS WELL TO FURTHER REDUCE HARMFUL POLLUTION AS SOON AS POSSIBLE.

THANK YOU FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK.

AND THAT'S THE END OF OUR SPEAKERS.

OH, I'M SO SORRY.

WE HAVE, UH, NOVA JONES.

GOOD EVENING, EVERYONE.

MY NAME IS NOVA JONES.

I USE THEY, THEM PRONOUNS.

I AM A RESIDENT, UH, IN DISTRICT FOUR.

I LIVE ACTUALLY JUST RIGHT AROUND THE CORNER FROM HERE, ABOUT FIVE MINUTES AWAY.

HAPPY TO BE HERE, UH, TO TALK ABOUT THE CLIMATE CRISIS, TALK ABOUT AUSTIN ENERGY AND THE UPDATES TO THE RESOURCE PLAN.

UM, NAMELY, AS OTHER SPEAKERS HAVE ALREADY MENTIONED, UH, WE ARE, I GUESS I WOULD SAY IN A POSITION TO BE URGENT IN SUBMITTING, UH, CLIMATE OR NOT CLIMATE, BUT RESOURCE PLANS, UH, THAT TAKE INTO ACCOUNT, UH, THE POSITION WE ARE IN WITH THE CLIMATE CRISES.

UH, AGAIN, THERE IS NO REASON FOR US TO WAIT UNTIL 2035, UH, WHICH SEEMS

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UH, NOT ONLY OF OZONE HAS ALREADY BEEN MENTIONED, UH, BUT WE ALSO HAVE TO BE CONCERNED ABOUT PARTICULATE MATTER, UH, AND ANY RELIANCE ON OIL AND GAS AND COAL AS RESOURCES ONLY FURTHER EXACERBATES THESE ISSUES.

UM, SO YES, WE NEED TO, UH, INSIST THAT COAL PLANTS, LIKE THE FAYETTE COAL PLANT IS SHUT DOWN PRIOR TO 2035, PRIOR TO 2030, UH, SO WE CAN MEET BETTER MEET CARBON FREE INITIATIVES BY 2030.

UH, BEYOND THAT, THERE HAS TO BE, UH, FURTHER, UH, INVESTMENT INTO A BETTER TRANSMISSION SYSTEM, TRANSMISSION INFRASTRUCTURE IN THE STATE OF TEXAS.

SO WE CAN ACTUALLY MEET THESE GOALS, UH, TO BE CARBON FREE BY 2030, AT LEAST IN THE CITY OF AUSTIN.

BUT EVEN THROUGHOUT THE STATE OF TEXAS.

IN ORDER FOR OTHER CITIES, UH, TO MEET THEIR CLIMATE GOALS, THERE NEEDS TO BE A GREATER TRANSMISSION SYSTEM.

UM, YOU CAN'T GO WITHOUT NOTICE, UH, THAT IN A LOT OF THINGS THAT I'VE READ OR UNDERSTOOD OR ANALYZED, THAT THERE IS A LACK OF URGENCY WHEN IT COMES TO TACKLING THE CR UH, CLIMATE CRISES.

THERE'S A LOT OF RESOURCES, A LOT OF DATA THAT SHOWS, UH, WHAT COMMUNITIES ARE THE MOST VULNERABLE, WHICH COMMUNITIES ARE THE MORE GREATLY EXPOSED TO POLLUTION, UH, AND IMPACTED WHEN IT COMES TO PUBLIC HEALTH.

UH, THE STATE OF TEXAS RANKS EIGHT OUTTA FIFTH, UH, 51 STATES AND DISTRICTS IN THE US.

UH, AND THIS IS ACCORDING TO THE ENVIRONMENTAL DEFENSE FUNDS, US CLIMATE VULNERABILITY INDEX WHEN IT COMES TO EXPOSURE AND VULNERABILITY, UH, 86 AS FAR AS THE NATIONAL VULNERABILITY PERCENTILE.

AND IF YOU LOOK AT THIS INDEX, WHICH AGAIN, IS PROVIDED BY THE ENVIRONMENTAL DEFENSE FUND, YOU WILL NOTICE THAT LARGELY THE COMMUNITIES THAT ARE IDENTIFIED AS THE MOST VULNERABLE ARE BLACK AND BROWN COMMUNITIES.

AGAIN, THIS IS NOT SOMETHING THAT CAN JUST BE SIMPLY STATED, UH, AND ANALYZED WITHOUT URGENCY.

AND SO, PLEASE, I HOPE THAT YOU ALL CONSIDER THIS, UH, AS YOU ARE DEVELOPING OR IN THE PROCESS OF DEVELOPING A, UH, RESOURCE PLAN TO MAKE SURE THAT WE ARE TAKEN INTO ACCOUNT THE VULNERABILITY OF COMMUNITIES, UH, THAT REQUIRE US TO BE MORE URGENT AND TO NOT MAKE PLANS WITH, AGAIN, GOALS THAT ARE TOO FAR OUT.

AND 2035, WE NEED TO BE CONSISTENT AND URGENT IN MAKING GOALS OR MEETING GOALS BY 2030 OR EVEN BEFORE THEN.

THANK YOU.

QUICK QUESTION, UH, IF I MAY A QUICK QUESTION.

UH, YOU ARE THE SECOND SPEAKER TO, UH, SUGGEST THAT THE DOCUMENT WE WE JUST RECEIVED TODAY, UH, HAS THAT FAYETTE WOULD BE CONTINUED UNTIL 2035.

IS THERE SOME, IS THERE SOME, IS THAT SOMEWHERE? NO, I, I DIDN'T, UH, MENTION THAT FAYETTE WOULD CONTINUE TO RUN UNTIL 2035.

OH, IT IS, UH, ALREADY IN THE DOCUMENT THAT YOU'RE REFERRING TO.

YEAH.

THAT THERE IS A PLAN TO RETIRE FAYETTE BY 2030, OR THE MODELING IS BASED ON RETIRING FAYETTE BY 2030.

I'M INSISTING THAT WE DO THAT PRIOR TO 2030.

I SEE THAT ANSWER.

YEAH.

I WAS LIKE GONNA ACTUALLY MENTION 'CAUSE A COUPLE CUSTOMER, CUSTOMERS, SPEAKERS, UM, MENTIONED 2035, BUT THE ASSUMPTION IN THE DOCUMENT IS ACTUALLY 2030 FOR FA.

THAT'S OKAY.

UM, BUT WE JUST GOT IT TODAY, SO I JUST READ THAT TODAY AS WELL.

YEAH, SOUNDS, SOUNDS GOOD.

THE DOCUMENT MENTIONS 2035 AS FAR AS LIKE CLIMATE CRISIS GOALS OVERALL.

YEAH.

YEP.

THANK YOU.

THANK YOU.

[APPROVAL OF MINUTES]

DO I HAVE A GO AHEAD.

I'D LIKE TO APPROVE THE MINUTES.

SECOND.

ALL IN FAVOR SAY AYE.

AYE.

AYE.

ALL RIGHT.

THROUGH WITH THAT THEN WE HAVE THE RCAS.

SO WE HAVE TWO THROUGH, DID WE, SORRY, GO AHEAD.

DID YOU WANT TO INTRODUCE THE NEW MEMBERS? ? THANK YOU, SIR.

THANK YOU.

CYRUS.

HE LOOKS VERY DISTINGUISHED WITH HIS BEARD.

PUT HIS NAME ON.

YES.

THANK YOU AGAIN.

UM, NICK LONG, SO WELCOME.

DO YOU WANNA INTRODUCE YOURSELF AND SOME OF YOUR BACKGROUND? SURE.

I'M, I'M NICK LONG.

I'M NICK LONG.

UH, I PRESENTLY WORK, UH, FOR TRAVIS COUNTY FOR COMMISSIONER HOWARD.

UH, PREVIOUS TO THAT I'D WORKED FOR THE PUBLIC UTILITY COMMISSION HERE IN TEXAS FOR ABOUT 12 YEARS.

UH, AND HAD BEEN, UH, IN PRIVATE PRACTICE AS AN ATTORNEY BEFORE THAT.

AND I LOOK FORWARD TO WORKING WITH Y'ALL.

AND, AND ARE YOU THE MAYOR'S APPOINTEE OR WHO, WHO, WHO? YES.

OKAY,

[00:15:01]

I'M GLAD THAT HE FINALLY NAMED SOMEBODY.

THAT'S GOOD.

GLAD TO HAVE YOU ON BOARD.

THANK YOU, CYRUS AGAIN.

OKAY, SO TWO THROUGH 15 OR 14? TWO THROUGH 15, ISN'T IT? I HAVE QUESTIONS ON, UH, FOUR AND 15.

OKAY.

I ALSO HAD 5, 9, 10, 11.

YOU SAID 15 FIVE.

CAN YOU TURN YOUR MIC ON COMMISSIONER WHITE? SORRY ABOUT THAT.

UM, ITEM, ITEM FIVE AND THEN 9, 10, 11, AND 12.

HMM.

OKAY.

SO WHAT DO WE HAVE LEFT HERE? WE HAVE 2, 3, 6, 7, 8, 13, AND 14.

CAN WE HAVE A MOTION FOR THOSE? I'D MOVE APPROVAL OF THOSE THAT YOU JUST LISTED? WE HAVE A SECOND.

I'LL SECOND.

OKAY.

ALL IN FAVOR FOR 2, 3, 6, 7, 8, 13, AND 14.

SAY AYE.

AYE.

OKAY.

SO LET'S HEAD BACK TO STARTING AT NUMBER FOUR.

[4. Recommend authorizing negotiation and execution of two contracts for tree growth regulator services with Edko LLC and T&S Growth Solutions, LLC, each for up to three years for total contract amounts not to exceed $5,000,000, divided between the contractors. ]

GOOD EVENING COMMISSIONERS.

MY NAME IS DAVID BOWLES.

I'M THE DIRECTOR OF TRANSMISSION AND SUBSTATION OPERATIONS.

I'M FILLING IN FOR ELTON RICHARDS, VICE PRESIDENT OF FIELD OPERATIONS.

UM, THANK YOU.

UH, MR. BOWLES? I'M KAY TROS, COMMISSIONER TROS.

UM, SO ON THESE THIS, UH, $5 MILLION, UH, CONTRACT PROPOSAL, UM, TOTAL FOR THREE YEARS, I'M, I'M INTERESTED IN HOW THIS, UM, TREE GROWTH REGULATOR SERVICE INTEGRATES WITH THE OTHER VEGETATION MANAGEMENT CONTRACTS THAT WE'VE DISCUSSED.

I GUESS MOST RECENTLY AFTER THE LAST WINTER STORM IN WHICH WE HEARD THAT THERE WAS A BIG STAFFING PROBLEM, THE INABILITY TO STAFF THOSE CONTRACTS.

CAN YOU, CAN YOU ADDRESS HOW THESE WILL WORK WITH THE OTHER VEGETATION MANAGEMENT CONTRACTS COMMISSIONER? THEY WORK WITH THE OTHER VEGETATION MANAGEMENT SERVICES IN THAT IT GIVES US THE ABILITY TO SLOW THE GROWTH OF THE TREE BRANCHES ON OUR SYSTEM TO WHERE WE DON'T HAVE TO ROLL OVER AS MUCH TO SO MANY VEGETATION CREWS TO GO BACK AND TRIM THOSE BRANCHES AND LIMIT OUR ALLS.

AND WHAT IT DOES IS ACTUALLY INCREASES THE ROOT GROWTH IN THE TREE WHILE LIMITING THE BRANCH GROWTH AND SLOWING THAT GROWTH RATE.

AND IT HELPS THE TREES TO ENHANCE THEIR HEALTH AND ALSO SURVIVE THROUGH OUR INCLEMENT WEATHER THAT WE'VE BEEN HAVING.

SO THESE, THIS IS, UH, A TREE GROWTH REGULATOR IS USE OF APPLICATION OF HERBICIDES, RIGHT? YES.

COMMISSIONER, THEY'RE EPA APPROVED AND THEY'RE SPECIFIC, THEY'RE, UM, DIRECTED TO THE TREE IN QUESTION.

AND, UH, BEFORE THE APPLICATION IS MADE, UH, NOTIFICATION AND DISCUSSION INVOLVES THE PROPERTY OWNER ON THAT RECOMMENDED APPLICATION ON THAT.

AND DOES THE PROPERTY OWNER HAVE ANY ABILITY TO, UM, OBJECT TO THE APPLICATION OF HERBICIDES ON THEIR PROPERTY? UH, LET ME FOLLOW UP ON THAT, BUT MY ANSWER WOULD BE YES, THEY DO HAVE OPPORTUNITY TO DO THAT, BUT LET ME FOLLOW UP ON THAT WITH YOU.

AND WOULD SO, UH, IF WOULD AN OBJECTION BE, UM,

[00:20:01]

COMMISSIONER.

OKAY.

THANK YOU.

THANKS.

UM, YEAH, I DEFINITELY FIND THIS, UH, CONCERNING AND I'M, I'M WONDERING IT, SO IT SOUNDS LIKE THE REASON FOR APPLYING THIS HERBICIDE IS JUST TO LENGTHEN THE TIME BETWEEN TRIMMING THE AREA.

IS THAT, IS THERE ANY OTHER REASON? YES, COMMISSIONER.

YES.

IT SLOWS DOWN THE GROWTH RATE OF THE ACTUAL TREE BRANCHES.

OKAY.

AND HAS THE UTILITY DONE ANY ANALYSIS AS TO HOW MUCH OF THAT HERBICIDE MIGHT RUN OFF AFTER APPLICATION? NOT THAT I'M AWARE OF, BUT WE'VE HAD BEEN IN CONSULTATION WITH OUR SURROUNDING UTILITIES THAT USE THIS SAME APPLICATION IN THEIR SYSTEMS. OKAY.

AND WHAT ABOUT ANY EFFECTS ON POLLINATORS AND OTHER WILDLIFE? HAS THAT BEEN ASSESSED? UM, NOT TO MY KNOWLEDGE.

ALL I KNOW IS IT IS EPA APPROVED AND IT'S NOT SUPPOSED TO? WELL, LOTS OF THINGS ARE EPA APPROVED.

YEAH, IT'S, IT'S NOT.

AND WHAT ABOUT LIKE, UH, EFFECT ON, YOU KNOW, HUMANS THAT MIGHT COME IN CONTACT WITH THESE SAP BEEN ASSESSED? YEAH, I'LL FOLLOW UP ON THAT, BUT FROM MY UNDERSTANDING IS THE EXPOSURE, IT'S THE, UM, DIRECT EXPOSURE FROM WHENEVER YOU'RE APPLYING IT, NOT WHEN IT'S ACTUALLY IN THE SOIL.

MM-HMM, .

AND DO YOU KNOW FOR HOW LONG AFTER APPLICATION? NO MA'AM, BUT THEY'LL BE SPECIFIED BECAUSE THEY HAVE TO GO BY THE RECOMMENDATION BY THE MANUFACTURER AND THE ENVIRONMENT THAT'S IN IT HAS TO BE SPECIFIC WEATHER THAT THEY CAN APPLY THIS IN.

AND WE KEEP A LOG OF OF THAT.

AND HOW MUCH HAS BEEN APPLIED.

AND WOULD THIS BE APPLIED IN AREAS THAT PEOPLE DO HAVE ACCESS TO? YES, THAT'S AS FAR AS PROPERTY OWNERS AND OUR ELECTRIC DISTRIBUTION AND TRANSMISSION EASEMENTS.

THANKS.

OTHER QUESTIONS? I HAVE A QUESTION.

UH, HOW IS IT APPLIED? IT'S A CLAY-BASED APPLICATION AND THEY JUST EJECT IT INTO THE SOIL.

INTO THE SOIL? YES, SIR.

OR IS COMMISSIONER IT? IT'S NOT IN AN AREA THEN IT'S PER TREE.

YES.

COMMISSIONER.

IT'S PER TREE.

IT, IT'S, UH, ISOLATED APPLICATION.

OKAY, THANK YOU.

OTHER WOULD, WOULD IT BE POSSIBLE TO GET A LIST OF THE, UM, TYPE OF TREE REGULATORS OR HERBICIDES THAT ARE USED? JUST, IS THAT SOMETHING THAT, IS THAT I DIDN'T SEE IT, THE ACTUAL NAMES AND THE CHEMICALS IN THE DOCUMENTS ITSELF? OR ARE THEY SOMEWHERE? YEAH, WE SPECIFY A PARTICULAR CHEMICAL OR A CITY OF AUSTIN APPROVED EQUIVALENT TO THAT CHEMICAL.

OH, AND WHERE WOULD I FIND THAT? IN THE, IN THE FILES? YES.

I, I COULD GIVE THAT TO YOU.

OKAY.

YEAH, IF YOU COULD JUST SHARE THAT WITH THE, WITH THE COMMISSION.

ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? WELL, I GUESS, UM, I'D LIKE TO MAKE A MOTION THAT SINCE THERE ARE A NUMBER OF THINGS THAT WE'VE BEEN, UH, TOLD THAT WE CAN GET INFORMATION ABOUT THAT WE DON'T HAVE TONIGHT, I'D LIKE TO MAKE A MOTION TO TABLE THIS ITEM NUMBER FOUR UNTIL OUR NEXT MEETING.

SECOND, WE HAVE A MOTION AND A SECOND.

HOW ABOUT TABLING IT? ALL IN FAVOR, SAY AYE.

A AYE.

AYE.

I THINK WE HAVE YOU UNANIM KNOW AT THE TABLE IT.

THANK YOU.

THANK YOU.

ALRIGHT, THANK YOU COMMISSIONER.

LET'S GO TO NUMBER FIVE.

IT, EXCUSE ME.

JUST PER, JUST PROCEDURALLY IF WE TABLE IT, DOES IT STILL GET SENT TO CITY COUNCIL BEFORE THEN? OR, UM, COMMISSIONER CHAPMAN, COULD YOU TURN YOUR MIC ON PLEASE? WELL HAVE TO TURN YOURSELF.

UH,

[00:25:03]

THERE, THERE.

JUST PROCEDURALLY, UH, WOULD AUSTIN ENERGY GO AHEAD AND SUBMIT IT TO COUNCIL, UH, BEFORE WE VOTE ON IT AGAIN? YES, LET'S ASK ROBIN AND OR AMY.

I, I'LL ANSWER.

OKAY, BOB.

SO, UM, BOB, DO YOU WANNA GO TO A MIC? SURE.

, I'M TRYING TO SAVE LISA SINCE SHE'S GONNA BE UP HERE ALL NIGHT.

UM, SO, YOU KNOW, UNLESS IT'S SOME KIND OF EMERGENCY TO GET IT DONE, I, I THINK WE COULD PROBABLY PUT IT OFF A MONTH.

LISA, WHAT DO YOU THINK IT'S GONNA BE JANUARY.

WE DON'T HAVE .

WHICH, WHICH AGENDA DO WE KNOW? OKAY, WE'LL LOOK AT IT, WE'LL SEE WHAT WE CAN DO.

OKAY, THANK YOU.

ALRIGHT, THANK YOU.

NUMBER FIVE.

[5. Recommend authorizing negotiation and execution of a contract for one-time preventive generator maintenance with Grid Solutions (US) LLC, in an amount not to exceed $1,650,000. ]

1.6 MILLION COMM.

COMMISSIONER WHITE BUDDY.

I'M JACK BORSCH, I'M THE INTERIM INTERIM DIRECTOR, I'M SORRY.

INTERIM VICE PRESIDENT OF POWER PRODUCTION.

UM, I'LL ANSWER YOUR QUESTIONS ON ITEM FIVE.

I ACTUALLY DON'T HAVE A QUESTION.

I JUST DIDN'T WANNA VOTE FOR IT WITH THE OTHERS, BUT THANK YOU.

I HAVE A QUESTION.

CAN YOU JUST DESCRIBE WHAT THIS IS ACTUALLY FOR AND WHY THIS ONE-TIME MAINTENANCE IS NEEDED FOR THE GAS PLANTS? SURE.

THESE ARE THE GENERATOR BREAKERS THAT ARE BREAKERS THAT CONNECT THE GENERATOR UNITS THEMSELVES TO THE GRID.

UM, THEY'RE INDIVIDUAL UNITS.

THERE'S ONE FOR SANDHILL FIVE A AND FOUR FIVE C, WHICH IS THE GAS TURBINE STEAM TURBINE.

THERE'S ONE EACH.

THEY'RE A SINGLE POINT OF FAILURE.

SO PART OF THIS AGREEMENT IS TO TEST AND, AND CLEAN THOSE BREAKERS.

ALSO SOME LONG LEAD TIME SPARE PARTS.

THESE ARE CONSIDERED SINGLE POINTS OF FAILURE.

SO THE LONG LEAD TIMES, IF WE DON'T HAVE 'EM, WE COULD BE OFF FOR MONTHS IF NOT LONGER.

ANY OTHER QUESTIONS ON NUMBER FIVE? THANK YOU.

OKAY, THANK YOU.

DO YOU HAVE A MOTION? I'LL MAKE A MOTION BECAUSE IF WE'RE GONNA OPERATE THOSE THINGS, WE NEED TO MAKE SURE THEY, THEY WORK WHILE WE'RE OPERATING, BUT OF COURSE AT SOME POINT I WANT THEM SHUT DOWN.

BUT YEAH, I'LL MAKE A MOTION.

OKAY.

I'LL SECOND.

ALL IN FAVOR SAY AYE.

AYE.

AYE.

AYE.

WELL, OKAY, SO, OKAY.

2, 4, 6, WE HAVE 6 4 1 AGAINST, WE GO TO NUMBER NINE

[Items 9 - 12]

PUBLIC STORAGE.

YEAH, I MEAN, REALLY, I JUST, UH, COULD WE ADDRESS 9, 10, 11, 12 TOGETHER? THEY'RE ALL SOLAR.

SURE.

THANK YOU.

GOOD EVENING COMMISSION.

RICHARD GENESEE, VICE PRESIDENT OF CUSTOMER ENERGY SOLUTIONS.

I'M HERE TO ADDRESS YOUR QUESTIONS ON 9, 10, 11 AND 12 IF YOU HAVE THEM.

THANK YOU, RICHARD.

UM, REALLY I JUST WANNA START WITH CONGRATULATIONS.

THERE'S SOME BIG PROJECTS HERE AND THIS IS GREAT TO SEE.

UM, AND I KNOW WE HAVEN'T, YOU KNOW, SEEN A TON OF COMMERCIAL INSTALLATIONS THIS YEAR AND REALLY JUST, UM, WAS KIND OF CURIOUS IF THERE WAS ANYTHING THAT Y'ALL DID THAT KIND OF SPURRED ALL OF THESE TO COME FORWARD AT ONCE OR IF IT'S JUST COINCIDENCE THAT, THAT THEY'RE GETTING IT DONE BY THE END OF THE YEAR OR SOMETHING.

WELL, CREDIT GOES TO THE TEAM AND, YOU KNOW, JUST KIND OF, UH, WORKING WITH, UH, CUSTOMERS TO GET THESE, UH, IN AND PROCESSED AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE.

AND, UH, MAKING SURE THAT OUR CUSTOMERS ARE AWARE OF THESE OPPORTUNITIES AND THAT WE'RE DOING EVERYTHING THAT WE CAN TO FACILITATE THEM BRINGING THEM FORWARD.

SO, UM, AS YOU KNOW, YOU KNOW, UH, WE HAVE A REALLY FOCUSED AND DEDICATED TEAM AND, YOU KNOW, I THINK THEY DESERVE ALL THE CREDIT OF GETTING THESE, UH, THROUGH THE SYSTEM.

YEAH, A HUNDRED PERCENT.

UM, I GUESS MY OTHER QUESTION WOULD, WOULD JUST BE, YOU KNOW, I SEE,

[00:30:01]

DO Y'ALL HAVE ANY PLANS TO USE THESE OR ANY OF THE OTHER, UM, EXISTING COMMERCIAL SOLAR INSTALLATIONS TO, YOU KNOW, KIND OF PROMOTE THE, THE PROGRAM TO GET MORE UPTAKE ON THE COMMERCIAL SIDE? YEAH, I'D SAY TO THE EXTENT THAT, UM, THERE ARE MORE COMMERCIAL OPPORTUNITIES AND STORAGE OPPORTUNITIES WE WOULD ABSOLUTELY USE WITH THE CUSTOMER'S PERMISSION, OBVIOUSLY EVERY OPPORTUNITY TO PROMOTE ADDITIONAL ACTIVITY IN THE, IN THE SECTOR, SO.

OKAY.

WELL THAT'S ALL.

THANKS.

CONGRATULATIONS.

THANK YOU.

I WAS JUST PERSONALLY REALLY EXCITED BY NINE BECAUSE I'M ALWAYS ON I 35 AND I'M ALWAYS SEEING THOSE STORAGE UNITS WITH THE ORANGE ON IT AND THINKING THOSE WOULD BE GREAT PLACES TO PUT SOLAR ON.

AND HERE THEY'RE, SO CONGRATULATIONS.

GREAT, THANK YOU.

COMMISSIONERS.

SO DO I, WE HAVE A MOTION ON THIS.

I'LL MOVE APPROVAL OF ITEMS 9, 10, 11, AND 12.

WE HAVE A SECOND.

ALL IN FAVOR SAY AYE.

AYE.

AYE.

OKAY, SO GETS US THROUGH TO 15,

[15. Recommend authorizing award and execution of a construction contract with Capital Excavation Company for the East Village Substation project in the amount of $9,300,601.85 plus a $1,000,000 contingency, for a total contract amount not to exceed $10,300,601.85.]

GOOD EVENING.

ELAINE VASULKA, INTERIM VICE PRESIDENT OF ELECTRIC SYSTEM ENGINEERING AND TECHNICAL SERVICES.

GOOD EVENING, ELAINE.

SO THIS IS, UH, BASICALLY A $10 MILLION CONTRACT FOR THE EAST VILLAGE SUBSTATION.

YES.

I LOOKED THROUGH SOME OF THE DOCUMENTS AND IT APPEARS TO ME THAT THIS IS ALL THE SITE WORK.

IT IS NOT THE ACTUAL CONSTRUCTION OF THE SUBSTATION.

IS THAT RIGHT? IT IS THE ACTUAL CONSTRUCTION OF THE SUBSTATION AND THE, THE SITE WORK BEFORE? YES.

OH, IT WASN'T LISTED IN THE DOCUMENTS THAT, OKAY.

UH, AS WITHIN THE SCOPE OF THE WORK, I CAN DOUBLE CHECK, BUT WE DID, I DID VALIDATE THIS IS FOR THE CONSTRUCTION OF, OF THE SUBSTATION.

THAT'S GOOD TO KNOW BECAUSE FOR THAT PRICE TAG, I THOUGHT THAT WAS GONNA BE A LITTLE MUCH FOR SITE.

IT'S, IT'S MORE THAN THE SITE WORK.

YES.

I MEAN THE SITE WORK WAS EXTENSIVE.

YES.

UM, UH, AND UH, IT ALSO INDICATES THAT THIS NEW SUBSTATION IS TO SUPPORT DEVELOPMENT.

DO, IS THERE A PARTICULAR DEVELOPMENT THAT, UH, YOU KNOW OF THAT IS NEED, THAT WILL NEED THE, UH, THIS SUBSTATION? UM, IT'S ACTUALLY TO SUPPORT, UM, RATHER THAN COMMERCIAL DEVELOPMENTS.

THERE ARE SOME LARGE SUBDIVISIONS GOING IN IN THAT AREA, SO IT SUPPORTS LARGER, UM, THOSE SUBDIVISIONS AND THE INCREASED LOAD GIVES SOME SYSTEM REDUNDANCY IN THAT AREA AS WELL.

SO IS THERE ANY, UM, UH, ABILITY TO ASK THE DEVELOPERS OF THOSE SUBDIVISIONS TO CONTRIBUTE TO THE COST OF THIS SUBSTATION? UM, IT'S MY UNDERSTANDING THE DEVELOPER IN, UM, THE ORIGINAL EAST VILLAGE, UH, DEVELOPMENT PROCESS GAVE US THE LAND FOR THE SUBSTATIONS.

SO THAT HAS ALREADY OCCURRED THAT, SO THAT'S THE CONTRIBUTION, NOT, YES.

NOT TOWARDS THE CONSTRUCTION, BUT TOWARDS THE LANCE.

YES.

AND THIS IS JUST PART OF DISTRIBUTION, YOU KNOW, BUILT, CONTINUED, ONGOING BUILD OUT AND, UM, RELIABILITY OF OUR SYSTEM.

OKAY.

CAN YOU DESCRIBE WHERE THIS IS PHYSICALLY? WHERE IS THIS? YES.

UM, KIND OF NORTHEAST.

IT'S UP NEAR HOWARD LANE, AND I'M TRYING TO, TO SEE HERE, I'VE GOT, UM, NORTH OF PALMER LANE, SOUTH OF KILLINGSWORTH LANE, EAST OF DESAL AND WEST OF CAMERON.

SO NORTHEAST CORNER.

I CAN CONFIRM THERE'S A LOT OF DEVELOPMENT UP IN THAT AREA.

, , I THINK THERE'S A LOT OF DEVELOPMENT EVERYWHERE IN AUSTIN, BUT OTHER QUESTIONS? OH, ALL IN FAVOR SAY AYE.

AYE.

OKAY.

THANK YOU.

I'M SORRY, I MISSED WHO MADE THE MOTION.

AND SECOND, I, I WOULD SAY TO APPROVE THAT, UM, ITEM 15 SECOND.

ALL IN FAVOR SAY AYE.

SORRY, I ACCELERATED THE PROCESS OR ATTEMPTED TO .

UM, OKAY.

BEFORE WE, UH, BEFORE WE GO TO THE NEXT AGENDA ITEM, JUST SORTING THROUGH ALL THESE PROPOSALS, I, I NOTICED THAT THERE'S, UH, EITHER A WAIVER OR SOLE SOURCE FOR EVERY OPPORTUNITY FOR MINORITY AND WOMEN-OWNED CONTRACTS, UH, AND ALL OF WHICH IS, UH, FOR FU FOR A FUTURE MEETING.

[00:35:01]

SO I MAY BE JUMPING TO A FUTURE AGENDA ITEM, BUT ANYWAY, THAT'D BE HELPFUL.

OKAY, LET'S LOG THAT.

THANK YOU.

SO, I'M SORRY, DID WE VOTE ON THAT ACTUALLY? OKAY, SIR.

UNANIMOUSLY.

OKAY, NOW WE'RE

[16. Staff briefing on the Fourth Quarter Financial Report by Stephanie Koudelka, Finance Director.]

HI, GOOD EVENING.

I'M STEPHANIE DELCOM, DIRECTOR OF FINANCE OVER OUR ACCOUNTING TEAM HERE AT AUSTIN ENERGY, AND I'M PRESENTING TO YOU OUR FOURTH QUARTER UNAUDITED VERY PRELIMINARY RESULTS FOR FISCAL YEAR 2023.

NEXT SLIDE PLEASE.

THE AGENDA THIS EVENING FOR OUR QUARTERLY FINANCIAL REPORT INCLUDES AN EXECUTIVE SUMMARY.

I'LL RUN THROUGH OUR KPIS RELATED TO OUR BOND RATING.

I'LL RUN THROUGH OUR BUDGET TO ACTUAL RESULTS AS WELL AS OUR GAP BASED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS.

AND I'VE INCLUDED A COUPLE OF SLIDES FOR YOU THIS EVENING ON CALENDAR YEAR 2022, ENERGY INFORMATION ADMINISTRATION DATA, UM, WHICH COMPARES AES RATES TO OTHER TEXAS UTILITIES UNDER OUR COMPETITIVENESS METRIC.

NEXT SLIDE PLEASE.

FOR THE EXECUTIVE SUMMARY THROUGH SEPTEMBER, OUR OPERATING REVENUES WITH TRANSFERS WERE 1.9 BILLION.

THAT'S A 12% VARIANCE OVER BUDGET, PRIMARILY DUE TO THOSE HIGH POWER COSTS THAT WE EXPERIENCED THIS SUMMER WITH THAT EXTREME SUMMER HEAT THAT WE'RE ALL FAMILIAR WITH, UM, AS WELL AS HIGH MARKET PRICES THAT CORRELATED OVER TO OPERATING EXPENSES WITH TRANSFERS THAT IS ALSO OVER, OVER BUDGET.

DUE TO THAT SAME REASON FOR, UM, OUR FINANCIAL POLICIES.

WE ARE IMPARTIAL COMPLIANCE WITH OUR POLICIES.

THOSE ARE ADOPTED AS YOU KNOW, WITH OUR BUDGET PROCESS EACH YEAR.

UM, FOR OUR DEBT AND OPERATING POLICIES, WE SEE FULL COMPLIANCE THERE.

OUR CASH AND RESERVES ARE STILL UNDER THE MINIMUM.

WE HAVE A POLICY IN OUR FINANCIAL POLICIES THAT WILL HAVE 150 DAYS CASH ON HAND.

WE ARE SITTING AT 395 MILLION VERSUS THAT POLICY MINIMUM OF FIVE 20.

WE HAVE SEEN A SLIGHT UPTICK.

UM, I DID SHOW YOU A DAY'S CASH ON HAND SLIDE LAST QUARTER THAT SHOWED WE WERE UNDER AS WELL.

WE HAVE SEEN A LITTLE BIT OF CASH COME IN.

UM, WE WERE ABLE TO COVER OUR MARKET EXPOSURE WITH A LETTER OF CREDIT WITH ERCOT.

SO WE WERE ABLE TO PULL SOME COLLATERAL BACK THAT WE HAD SITTING WITH A ERCOT.

SPEAKING OF ERCOT, THE POWER SUPPLY ADJUSTMENT RATE, WE ARE UNDER RECOVERED AT SEP SEPTEMBER BY 115 MILLION.

UM, I DO HAVE A SLIDE THAT RUNS THROUGH, UM, THE FISCAL YEAR, WHICH ENCOMPASSES MO MOST OF THE RATE YEAR.

THAT'LL SHOW YOU HOW WE LANDED AT THAT 115 MILLION UNDER.

UM, WE DID ADMINISTRATIVELY ADJUST THE PSA IN OCTOBER OF 2023 TO START RECOVERING THAT UNDERCOVERED BALANCE.

NEXT SLIDE PLEASE.

FOR OUR FINANCIAL HEALTH STRATEGIC GOAL, WE HAVE A, UM, GOAL OF A DOUBLE A BOND RATING FROM STANDARD AND POS AS OF THE END OF THE FISCAL YEAR.

WE'RE SITTING AT AA MINUS.

WE DO TRACK THESE FOUR METRICS THAT YOU SEE ON THE SCREEN HERE RELATED TO, UH, AA RATED PUBLIC POWER UTILITY.

OUR DAYS CASH ON HAND IS 92 DAYS AGAINST A MINIMUM OF 150 DAYS.

THAT'S MOSTLY DUE TO, UM, THE POWER SUPPLY MARKET THAT, UM, IS UNDER RECOVERED 115 MILLION.

SO OUR CASH IS DUE FROM OUR CUSTOMER.

UM, IN THAT RATE FOR OUR DEBT SERVICE COVERAGE RATIO, WE ARE, UM, SEEING A LITTLE BIT BETTER THERE.

WE'RE AT 2.2 AGAINST A BENCHMARK OF 2.5.

UM, THAT'S MOSTLY DUE TO THE BASE RATES THAT WE IMPLEMENTED IN 2023.

AND THAT IS, UM, AFFECTING OUR OPERATING MARGIN AS WELL.

WE DO SEE SOME STRESS ON THAT MARGIN STILL.

UM, MOSTLY DUE TO INCREASED COSTS IN THE FISCAL YEAR.

UM, WE SAW PRETTY HEFTY AMOUNT OF PENSION COSTS THAT ARE, UM, UNFUNDED RELATED TO OUR PENSION LIABILITY THAT KIND OF, UH, STRAIN THAT OPERATING MARGIN.

IF I COULD, I, MAY I ASK A

[00:40:01]

THE, THE DAY'S CASH ON HAND.

MM-HMM.

POLICY ADOPTED BY COUNSEL YEARS AGO.

UH, 150 DAYS TO ME SEEMS LIKE A LOT, LOT OF MONEY IN THE BANK.

SO CAN YOU, DO YOU KNOW HOW THAT NUMBER WAS ARRIVED AT? UM, I DON'T KNOW EXACTLY HOW IT WAS DERIVED FOR THE POLICY, BUT I DO KNOW IT'S A PRETTY, UM, INDUSTRY STANDARD EVEN IN THE WORLD OF, UH, THE RATING AGENCIES LIKE TO SEE ABOUT 150 DAYS CASH ON HAND.

UM, THE UTILITY RUNS THROUGH ABOUT $4 MILLION A DAY.

AND SO 150 DAYS MAY SEEM LIKE A LOT, BUT IT'S, UM, IT'S A GOOD BENCHMARK FOR A DOUBLE A RATED PUBLIC POWER UTILITY.

AND FINALLY, ON OUR DEBT TO CAPITALIZATION RATIO, UM, WE HAVEN'T SEEN MUCH CHANGE HERE.

WE'RE STILL AT 56%.

UM, THAT, THAT DID GO UP SLIGHTLY DUE TO THE DECISION TO FINANCE THE NACODOCHES PLANT.

UM, BUT AGAIN, NO CHANGE THERE IN THE LAST COUPLE OF QUARTERS.

NEXT SLIDE PLEASE.

THIS SLIDE IS OUR BUDGET TO ACTUAL FUND SUMMARY AT SEPTEMBER.

THIS REPRESENTS MOSTLY A CASH BASIS OF ACCOUNTING FOR THE UTILITY.

UM, AS YOU CAN SEE, I'VE HIGHLIGHTED THAT WE ENDED THE YEAR WITH AN EXCESS OF REVENUES OF 68 MILLION, BUT I'VE ALSO HIGHLIGHTED OVER TO THE RIGHT THERE, THAT'S PRIMARILY DUE TO THE TRANSFERS IN THAT WE PULLED IN FROM OUR POWER SUPPLY RESERVE.

SO WE TRANSFERRED 70 MILLION OF RESERVES TO OUR WORKING CAPITAL TO COVER OUR OPERATING EXPENSES MOSTLY RELATED TO THE POWER MARKET THIS SUMMER.

SO THE OVERALL CASH POSITION DID NOT CHANGE, BUT WE MOVED IT FROM RESERVES TO WORKING CAPITAL TO MAKE THOSE PAYMENTS.

WE ALSO DID SEE SOME HELP FROM, DON'T HAVE IT HIGHLIGHTED HERE, BUT OVER BUDGET AND INTEREST REVENUE.

AND WE ALSO TRANSFERRED LESS CASH TO COVER OUR CAPITAL PLAN, WHICH WE, UM, DECREASED OUR ESTIMATE AND COST FOR FOR THE FISCAL YEAR.

NEXT SLIDE.

THIS IS ALSO, UM, BUDGETED NUMBERS RELATED TO OUR REVENUE AT THE END OF THE FOURTH QUARTER.

IN TOTAL, WE WERE 7% ABOVE OUR FORECASTED BUDGET AMOUNT.

UM, THE FIRST TWO BARS THERE, OUR BASE REVENUE, WE DID SEE, UM, OVER BUDGET.

THAT'S MAINLY DUE TO USAGE THAT WE SAW.

UM, OVER THE SUMMER.

I THINK WE'RE ABOUT 6% OVER IN USAGE FROM BUDGET FOR THE FISCAL YEAR ALSO.

UM, THE BIGGEST FLUXX.

THE SECOND ONE IS OF COURSE THE POWER SUPPLY, WHICH WE DID JUST DISCUSSED.

UM, THOSE COSTS DO AFFECT REVENUE AND EXPENSE FOR POWER SUPPLY.

NEXT SLIDE PLEASE.

ON THE EXPENSE SIDE, UH, SAME STORY POWER SUPPLY CAUSING MOST OF THE VARIANCE.

UM, TOTAL EXPENSE WE CAME ABOVE OUR FORECAST, UM, 9% OR 120 MILLION.

AGAIN, MOSTLY DRIVEN BY POWER SUPPLY, MARKET COST.

NEXT SLIDE.

THIS SLIDE IS OUR POWER SUPPLY ADJUSTMENT RATE.

JUST GIVES YOU KIND OF A PICTURE OF THE FISCAL YEAR.

UM, THE GRAY BAR AND YELLOW BAR ARE EXPENSES AGAINST BUDGET BY MONTH.

SO YOU CAN TELL WHICH MONTHS, UM, RESULTED IN A PRETTY BIG VARIANCE TO BUDGET.

UM, RELATED TO THE MARKET WE EXPERIENCED THIS SUMMER, THE BLUE LINE THAT'S KIND OF HOVERING ON TOP IS THE, THE BUILD REVENUE THAT WE RECEIVED TO RECOVER THOSE COSTS.

AS YOU CAN SEE, WE WERE PRETTY MUCH OVER COLLECTED FOR MAJORITY OF THE RATE YEAR UNTIL WE HIT JUNE, AND THAT'S WHEN WE REALLY STARTED SEEING THAT O UNDER RECOVERY KIND OF RAMP UP.

WE ARE AGAIN SITTING AT 115 MILLION UNDER, UNDER COLLECTED AS OF THE END OF THE FISCAL YEAR.

CAN QUICK QUESTION, CAN YOU JUST REMIND US? CITY CITY COUNCIL INCREASED THE PSA BUT PHASED IT IN OVER THREE YEARS, AND THEN IN ADDITION TO THAT, IN OCTOBER, YOU RAISED IT AGAIN.

SO IT'S BEEN RAISED IS AM I RIGHT? IT'S BEEN RAISED TWICE.

IT HAS IS, AM I CORRECT IN THAT? THAT'S CORRECT.

SO SINCE YURI, WE HAD INCREASED IT PRETTY SUBSTANTIALLY BECAUSE WE HAD THE, UM, MARKET FAVOR, UM, FROM YURI.

UM, SO WE DID INCREASE IT.

THE, THE ONE TIME, BUT YOU'RE RIGHT, WAS FOR A THREE YEAR RECOVERY OF THAT UNDER RECOVERY, IF I'M REMEMBERING RIGHT, THAT WAS ABOUT A HUNDRED MILLION.

SO WE'VE MADE NO PROGRESS AGAINST THE, THE RECOVERY SINCE THAT POINT.

AND AND IN TERMS OF A PERCENTAGE, DO YOU REMEMBER WHAT THE JUMP UP WAS WHEN THEY DID IT? WHEN THEY DID THE RATES, THEY DID THE, THE PSA OVER THREE AND THEN WE, DID WE JUST DO A 5% ADJUSTMENT IN OCTOBER? THAT'S CORRECT.

SO I BELIEVE IT WAS ABOUT A 50 TO 55% INCREASE POST URI.

UM, AND THE MOST RECENT, YOU'RE CORRECT, IN OCTOBER

[00:45:01]

AND GIVEN THIS, UM, THAT WERE BEHIND DO, DO WE, OH, DID YOU ALREADY MAKE A JUDGMENT IN NOVEMBER NOT TO INCREASE IT AGAIN? NOT YET.

OH.

NOVEMBER WE, UM, DID ONLY UPDATE BY VOLTAGE LEVEL, SO WE DIDN'T SEE, UM, INCREASES FROM ANY ADMINISTRATIVE ADJUSTMENTS.

OKAY.

SO WE DON'T KNOW YET FOR DECEMBER WHETHER WE'LL ADMINISTRATIVELY ADJUST AGAIN.

CORRECT.

WE'RE STILL REVIEWING THE RESULTS FROM THE OCTOBER FINANCIALS AND, AND DEVELOPING A STRATEGY SO WE CAN MAKE HEADWAY ON THAT UNDER RECOVERY.

THANKS.

SORRY IF THIS IS REPETITIVE, I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE I'M UNDERSTANDING.

WAS OCTOBER THE FIRST TIME THAT IT WAS INCREASED ADMINISTRATIVELY OR WAS IT INCREASED EARLIER IN THE YEAR AS WELL? THAT'S CORRECT.

OCTOBER, 2023 WAS THE FIRST 5% ADMINISTRATIVE ADJUSTMENT.

OKAY, THANKS.

SURE.

WE'LL MOVE ON TO THE NEXT SLIDE PLEASE.

ON OUR CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PLAN.

THE GRAPH ON THE LEFT HERE SHOWS YOU OUR SPEND WERE 87% SPENT OF OUR ORIGINAL BUDGET.

THE ORIGINAL BUDGET WAS AROUND 280 MILLION.

UM, WE DON'T HAVE THIS ON THE SLIDE HERE, BUT WE ARE VERY CLOSE TO OUR CURRENT YEAR ESTIMATE, WHICH WAS DEVELOPED, UM, AROUND THE MAY TIMEFRAME I BELIEVE.

AND WE CAME IN PRETTY CLOSE TO THAT AT 245 MILLION SPENT FOR THE FISCAL YEAR.

THE GRAPH ON THE RIGHT SHOWS HOW WE PAY FOR THOSE, UM, CAPITAL ASSETS.

WE ARE SHOWING 39% FUNDED WITH CASH, WHICH COMES FROM INTERNALLY GENERATED CASH AS WELL AS CASH FROM OUR CUSTOMERS FOR CONTRIBUTIONS, WHICH WAS ABOUT 40 MILLION IN FISCAL YEAR 23.

NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE EXCUSE ME.

YES.

HI.

I'M SORRY.

COMMISSIONER, CAN YOU TURN ON YOUR MIC? SORRY ABOUT THAT.

THAT'S OKAY.

CAN WE GET SOME BACKGROUND ON WHY DISTRIBUTION OVERSHOT? YEAH.

DISTRIBUTION IN THE ORIGINAL, UH, BUDGET, WHICH IS WHAT YOU'RE SEEING HERE IS, UM, OVER MOSTLY JUST DUE TO SYSTEM GROWTH.

UM, AND MOST OF THAT IS COVERED BY CONTRIBUTIONS AND AID OF CONSTRUCTION.

THANK YOU.

SURE.

NEXT SLIDE PLEASE.

SORRY, ONE BACK BALANCE SHEET.

OKAY.

OKAY.

WE'LL MOVE ON TO THE INCOME STATEMENT.

UM, FOR THE INCOME STATEMENT YOU'LL SEE HERE OVER THE FISCAL YEAR, I HIGHLIGHTED THAT WE'RE STILL IN A, A LOSS POSITION, UM, NOT MUCH DIFFERENT THAN 22, 20 22.

UM, EVEN WITH THE BASE RATE INCREASES THAT WE IMPLEMENTED THIS FISCAL YEAR, MOST OF THAT IS JUST DUE TO HIGHER COSTS THAT WE'VE SEEN, UM, ESPECIALLY IN THE AREA OF THE STORM, WHICH HAVE NOT BEEN RECOVERED OR ARE NOT REFLECTED ON THE INCOME STATEMENT.

AS OF THE END OF THE FISCAL YEAR ON THE RIGHT HERE, OUR AVERAGE NUMBER OF CUSTOMERS SEE A 2% YEAR OVER YEAR CHANGE, WHICH IS, UM, NOT REPRESENTED AN INCREASE IN SALES.

WE ACTUALLY HAD A LOSS IN SALES OVER THE FISCAL YEAR.

NEXT SLIDE PLEASE.

THERE'S BALANCE SHEET FOR THE BALANCE SHEET.

I'VE HIGHLIGHTED HERE OUR OPERATING RESERVES JUST TO, UH, SHOW YOU AGAIN THAT THOSE ARE DOWN OVER THE FISCAL YEAR DUE TO US PULLING THOSE FUNDS INTO OUR WORKING CAPITAL TO PAY OUR OPERATING EXPENSES.

AND I HAD SHOWED YOU THE CASH AND RESERVES BY KIND OF THE BUCKET THAT THEY'RE SITTING IN LAST QUARTER, AND I WANTED TO PRESENT IT TO YOU AGAIN THIS QUARTER JUST TO SHOW YOU THAT ALL OF OUR RESERVES ARE SITTING UNDER MINIMUMS. OUR WORKING CAPITAL, AGAIN, HAS BEEN REPLENISHED SOME BY THE TRANSFER FROM THE RESERVE TO WORKING CAPITAL.

UM, WE'RE NOT GONNA MOVE ANY CASH BACK JUST YET, JUST GIVEN OUR FY 24 MINIMUMS REQUIRE US TO HAVE ABOUT 190 MILLION IN WORKING CAPITAL.

SO WE'RE REVIEWING THAT NOW TO SEE KIND OF WHEN IS THE RIGHT TIME TO MOVE IT BACK TO RESERVES AND WHEN WHEN CAN WE FEASIBLY DO THAT? NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE.

AND AGAIN, THIS IS THE MARKET AND INDUSTRY ANALYSIS SECTION.

UM, THIS IS WHERE WE LOOK AT THE COMPETITIVENESS METRIC THAT WE KEEP OUR RATES IN THE LOWER HALF OF THE STATE OF TEXAS.

THE DATA HERE IS AGAIN FROM THE EIA AND REFLECTS CALENDAR YEAR 2022 DATA.

IF I MAY, IF I MAY ASK, UH OH, I'M SORRY.

I'M GONNA SLIDE AHEAD OF YOU.

GO AHEAD.

OKAY, GO AHEAD.

THIS FIRST SLIDE IS JUST, UH, REMINDER OF HOW WE KIND OF GATHER THE DATA TO BENCHMARK OURSELVES

[00:50:01]

UM, WE TAKE TOTAL, UH, TEXAS ELECTRIC PROVIDERS EXCLUDING OURSELVES.

WE ALSO EXCLUDE PROVIDERS THAT, UH, PROVIDE SERVICE ONLY TO COMMERCIAL AND INDUSTRIAL CUSTOMERS, AS WELL AS THOSE, UM, THAT PROVIDE TO LESS THAN 3% OF A RESIDENTIAL CUSTOMER BASE.

UM, WE TAKE THAT FILTERED DATA COME UP WITH AN EIGHT WEIGHTED AVERAGE RETAIL RATE OR THE TEXAS 50%.

AND YOU'LL SEE IN THE NEXT COUPLE OF SLIDES HOW WE, UM, STACKED UP AGAINST THOSE RATES.

NEXT SLIDE.

THIS SLIDE IS, UM, KIND OF JUST THE BASIS FOR THE SUPPORTING SLIDES YOU'LL SEE AFTER IT, JUST TO KIND OF SHOW YOU BY CUSTOMER CLASS HOW OUR RATES PERFORMED IN CALENDAR YEAR 2022.

AS YOU CAN SEE, OUR RESIDENTIAL IS, UH, BELOW THE AVERAGE WHILE COM COMMERCIAL AND INDUSTRIAL, SLIGHTLY ABOVE.

UM, OUR SYSTEM IS 10 POINT 10 CENTS PER KWH VERSUS THE TEXAS AVERAGE OF ABOUT 11 CENTS.

UM, THIS IS THE RATE THAT WE USE TO GAUGE, UM, OUR PERFORMANCE IN THAT COMPETITIVENESS METRIC.

UM, SO WE HAVE MET THAT FOR CALENDAR YEAR 2022.

THANKS.

I HAD A QUICK QUESTION.

SURE.

UM, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE ALWAYS LIKE TO TALK ABOUT AUSTIN ENERGY AS A GOOD THING IS THAT, UM, OUR AVERAGE USE IS BELOW MOST OTHER UTILITIES, MAYBE WITH THE EXCEPTION OF EL PASO.

IS THERE ANY, UM, DO YOU GUYS DO ANY SORT OF ANALYSIS THAT TAKES THAT INTO ACCOUNT THAT LOOKS AT THE, THE RATE AND THE AVERAGE AMOUNT USED AND THEN COMPARES WHAT AN NOT, WHAT THE AVERAGE RATE IS, BUT WHAT AN AVERAGE BILL IS FOR RESIDENTIAL? IS THAT SOMETHING THAT YOU GUYS DO OR COULD DO? WE DO HAVE THE AVERAGE RESIDENTIAL BILL AS A SLIDE IN HERE JUST TO SHOW YOU KIND OF WHERE WE STACK UP THERE AND I CAN GIVE YOU THOSE, UM, POINTS OF REFERENCE ON THE USAGE FOR THAT CUSTOMER AS WELL.

SURE.

NEXT SLIDE PLEASE.

AND AGAIN, THESE ARE JUST, UM, KIND OF REPETITIVE OF THE FIRST SLIDE, BUT JUST TO GIVE YOU AN IDEA OF WHO WE ARE BENCHMARKING OURSELVES AGAINST, THIS IS OUR SYSTEM AVERAGE RATE, UM, BY PROVIDER.

UM, AGAIN, TEXAS IS AT A LITTLE OVER 11 CENTS AUSTIN ENERGY AT 10 POINT 10 CENTS FOR THE CALENDAR YEAR 2022.

SO IS IT, UH, SO MY QUESTION, EXCUSE ME, MY QUESTION NOW IS, UH, THESE, BASED ON THE EARLIER SLIDE, THESE ARE THE LARGEST PROVIDERS BY RESIDENTIAL SALES.

IS THAT CORRECT? IS THAT HOW THESE ARE RANKED, UM, IN THIS RANKING? YES.

THESE ARE, UM, A SET OF UTILITIES THAT WE USE, UM, A CONSISTENT SET OF UTILITIES THAT WE USE THAT WE FEEL ARE MOST, UM, SIMILAR TO AE TO SHOW YOU KIND OF HOW WE PERFORMED AGAINST THEM.

THIS IS NOT THE FULL SET OF DATA, THIS IS JUST PULLING OUT OTHER MUNIS AND OTHERS THAT WE CAN SHOW YOU HOW WE'VE, UM, CAN COMPARE OUR RATES AGAINST.