Legalectric

Last night, the Red Wing Citizens Assembly report was presented to the Red Wing City Council:

Red Wing Citizens Assembly Event Report

The video isn’t posted yet, though last night’s Library Board meeting is.  ???  Will post that video when it shows up.

I’d had a particular issue that I want addressed in Red Wing, that of ethics in government, particularly development of a culture of ethical behavior, where people would raise whether there are conflicts of interest voluntarily, and these potential conflicts are sufficient to recuse from discussion and votes on an agenda item/issue.  What’s happened that I’ve observed in this town is that there’s no recognition or acknowledgement of conflicts, and it takes harsh exposure, press coverage, and resignation.  It doesn’t need to be that way, especially in a small community where there are so many ties, conflicts are to be expected, and the City needs to learn how to handle them.

Letter: Strengthen the city Code of Conduct

As a member of the Red Wing Citizens Assembly, I’m thinking more formally about public policy. As frequent participants in local issues, representing groups and members of the public, and as individual residents, Alan and I are particularly interested in Red Wing’s Code of Conduct. It’s a company town in many ways, with undue corporate influence.

Compared to that of the Public Utilities Commission where I practice (Minn. R. Ch. 7845), Red Wing’s Code of Conduct is inadequate. Under PUC Code, commissioners “shall behave in a manner that promotes public confidence in the integrity and impartiality of the commission’s decision-making process,” and prohibits “… any action that might result in or create a conflict of interest or the appearance of impropriety… .” Red Wing’s Code gives too much wiggle room.

Remember removal of Mayor Dennis Egan? Why was resignation even a question given the direct conflict of interest and sand issues on the city agenda at the time?

How many City Council members are financially connected to Xcel Energy, as employee, contractor or with business ties? Xcel matters are regularly before the council, i.e., LabUSA “ash mining” (Full disclosure: I represented in limited scope neighbors challenging that project), nuclear issues, utility personal property tax revenue, and the city’s legislative agenda. How does the city balance Red Wing’s interests with Xcel’s interests?

3M/Capitol Safety agreed to create 40 new jobs in exchange for a $500,000 state MIF Loan and $284,677, 100 percent city tax abatement, for the new building. 3M didn’t comply by the deadline, nor within the three-month grace period, and now they’re six months overdue. The public is paying over $19,000 per job, Red Wing’s share over $7,000 per job. The council granted an extension without penalty, with no disclosure of how many jobs 3M fell short. 3M is moving jobs around — why not to Red Wing? Shouldn’t tax be assessed during noncompliance, not abated? An “extension fee” of at least $19,000 per job not created by the deadline? How is extension, with no consequence, in the public interest?

These are just a few examples. A few thoughts for improvement:

• The Red Wing Code of Conduct should require full disclosure of employment and contracting ties, in campaign information and city website biography. For each agenda item with a potential conflict, council and commission members should be queried via roll call about conflicts and interests with their response on the record.

• The administrator’s council packet should review for each agenda item the “city interest,” “applicant interest” and “public interest” for consideration.

• The Code of Conduct should require full disclosure and recusal from discussion and decision of any council or commission member who is employee or contractor or has business dealings with a party to an agenda item.

• The City Council needs education on fiduciary responsibility, protection of city resources and public versus private interest.

City of Red Wing, revise the Code of Conduct. Give it some teeth.

Carol A. Overland and Alan Muller

Red Wing

Get to it, folks.  Comments are due TODAY! Here’s mine, and Alan’s, just filed:

Overland Legalectric Comment_HERC-Xcel 17-532

Muller Comments_20179-135413-01

in eDockets, go here to register, it’s quick, it’s easy, and you can post on Public Utilities Commission’s eDockets system.

Notice_20179-135289-01-1

On what? Xcel Energy’s latest plan (part of) to terminate and/or amend outrageously high priced Power Purchase Agreements on incinerators across Minnesota.

Comment period on HERC PPA Amendment

Just filed — hot off the press:

Commerce DER_20179-135384-01

Hennepin County_20179-135389-01

Xcel Energy_20179-135379-01

And check what Commerce DER is at long last admitting, that there’s a generation surplus and transmission is for export:

Not only is there no need, BUT THERE IS NO NEED FOR MINNESOTANS TO PAY FOR MORE TRANSMISSION! But that’s an argument for another day, another docket…

Here’s another snippet:

And check this conclusion reached by MN’s Dept of Commerce – DER in its first round of comments — that Xcel is double dipping:

Here are the DER Comments:

CommerceDER_20178-134456-02

And Comments of Hennepin County:

Hennepin County_20178-134679-01

Slowly, the siting process for Freeborn Wind is moving.  The Commission issued its order referring the application to Office of Administrative Hearings for a contested case, that’s a first for a wind project in Minnesota!

PUC Order_20178-135140-01

Erratta_20179-135278-01 

And LauraSue Schlatter, the Administrative Law Judge, has issued the Order for the Prehearing Conference, and a directive to the Applicants to share a proposed schedule, which they have done:

OAH_Notice_20179-135289-01

The Erratta Order issued is particularly important because it specifies that the rules that this process will go forward under is Minn. R. Ch. 1405:

Minn. R. Ch. 1405 contains the rules for siting under the Power Plant Siting Act (and wind siting chapter, Minn. Stat. Ch. 216F, is NOT under the PPSA, which is Minn. Stat. Ch. 216E), and not the OAH more general administrative procedure rules, Minn. R. Ch. 1400.  Note there’s no mention of Minn. R. Ch. 7854, about which I’ve filed how many Petitions for Rulemaking because these rules are so deficient and inadequate?  This is seriously inside baseball — it’s a major change, major admission, and what are the implications?  I’ve wanted wind siting to be moved over to the Power Plant Siting Act forever… it was improperly separated out of 116C, without any directive or authorization, when PPSA became Minn. Stat. Ch. 216E.  There’s homework to do.

Here we go…

Comments are due September 1, and Reply Comments are due September 15.

New law allows much of Minnesota’s biomass industry to be shut down

And it’s happening, and that’s a good thing — these plants that spew toxins and which have routinely violated their air permits should not have been built, permitted, and subsidized.  Shut down is going to happen:

Xcel, Benson agree on plan to mitigate power plant closure – MPR News

But is what they’ve agreed to in the public interest? Who all was a party to the negotiation? Are there other ways to deal with this?

Xcel Energy has asked the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission to approve its request to terminate the Power Purchase Agreement for the Benson turkey shit burner.

Xcel_Initial+Filing+Benson+063017+NSP+PUBLIC

To review the full docket, E-002/M-17-530, go HERE, and search for “17” (year) and “530” (docket).

What’s at issue?

I need to find the older dockets, they’re not listed here…

That’s the HERC garbage burner, known to some as the “Hennepin Energy Recovery Center.” It’s right next to the new baseball field, so I made a “HERC Hanky” as schnozz cover in the stands.

Xcel now wants to revise the HERC Power Purchase Agreement and lower the price it pays HERC for electricity.

HERC+PPA+Petition+PUBLIC

Hmmmmm, changing the rules in the middle of the game. Burning garbage has never been an economically winning proposition. Cut the rate?  What will that mean for Hennepin County?  As of a few minutes ago, the Public Utilities Commission announced a comment period on this change:

17-532+NOTICE+OF+COMMENT+PERIOD+HERC+PPA

Comments?  About what?

Initial Comments are due by 4:30 p.m. on September 11, 2017.  eFiling is preferred.  To eFile comments, go HERE TO REGISTER.  It’s simple and fast.  When you file, file under docket number 17 – 532 (that’s 17 for “year” and 532 for “docket number”)

Note the Commission asks, “Are there other project-related issues or concerns?”  Well, what’s wrong with HERC and burning?  For a long time this has been an issue for Neighbors Organizing for Change, Neighbors Against the Burner, Minneapolis Neighbors for Clean Air (wayback version), and the Sierra Club and the push to increase tonnage burned was successfully brought to a screeching halt by these groups and the folks of Minneapolis!   You can find some general information at Alan Muller’s site.  Alan reports that the HERC air permit expired something like 8 years ago, not uncommon.  Most Minnesota air permits are expired and the MPCA isn’t doing much about it.

Some specifics on the tonnage burning increase request that was foiled:

Muller – Comment – Spreadsheet of Pollutants

Comment-Eureka Recycling, Institute for Local Self Reliance, Linden Hills Power & Light, Women’s Environmental Initiative, Will Steger Foundation

Remember this?  “The Burning Question” way back in 2013? Let’s get real, burning garbage isn’t a question!!!

Tuesday 9/17 – Dr. Paul Connett at Mayflower Church

Who is paying attention to this now?