Draft Minutes (corrected)
Board of Directors Meeting
Wednesday, April 15, 2026
6:00 pm
In Person:
Board Room
Ava Community Energy
1999 Harrison St, Ste 2300
Oakland, CA 94612
Or from the following locations:
• Clipper Club - 5 Captain Dr. Emeryville, CA 94608
• 4917 Knowlson Terrace, Fremont, CA 94555
• 35653 Scarborough Dr Newark, CA 94560
• 1100 Webster St, 2nd Floor Conference Room, Oakland, CA 94607 • Larch Clover Community Center – 11157 West Larch Road, Tracy, CA 95376 • Stockton City Hall – 425 N El Dorado St., Stockton, CA 95202 Via Zoom:
https://avaenergy-org.zoom.us/j/87023071843
Or join by phone:
Dial(for higher quality, dial a number based on your current location): US: +1 669 900 6833 or +1 346 248 7799 or +1 253 215 8782 or +1 929 205 6099 or +1 301 715 8592 or 888 475 4499 (Toll Free) or 877 853 5257 (Toll Free)
Webinar ID: 870 2307 1843
Meetings are accessible to people with disabilities. Individuals who need special assistance or a disability-related modification or accommodation to participate in this meeting, or who have a disability and wish to request an alternative format for the meeting materials, should contact the Clerk of the Board at least 2 working days before the meeting at (510) 906- 0491 or [email protected].
If you have anything that you wish to be distributed to the Board of Directors, please email it to the clerk by 5:00 pm the day prior to the meeting.
1. (1:21) Welcome & Roll Call
Ava Community Energy
Board of Directors Page | 2
Present: Members: Marquez (Alameda County), Jordan (Albany), Tregub (Berkeley), Morada (Dublin), Kaur (Emeryville), Keng (Fremont), Roche (Hayward), Barrientos (Livermore), Del Catancio (Newark), Brown (Oakland), Nibert (Pleasanton), Fugazi (Stockton), Nygard (Tracy), Sakakihara (Union City), CAC Chair Souza (Community Advisory Committee) and Chair Andersen (Piedmont)
Not Present: Members: Diallo (Lathrop) and Rickman (San Joaquin County) Alternate Member Jordan served as representative for the City of Albany (Lopez).
Alternate Member Nibert served as the representative for the City of Pleasanton (Balch).
2. (2:48) Pledge of Allegiance
3. Public Comment
This item is reserved for persons wishing to address the Board on any Ava-related matters that are not otherwise on this meeting agenda. Public comments on matters listed on the agenda shall be heard at the time the matter is called. As with all public comment, members of the public who wish to address the Board are customarily limited to two minutes per speaker and must complete an electronic speaker slip. The Board Chair may increase or decrease the time allotted to each speaker. (4:09) Public Comment – Jessica Tovar provided historical context on the development of community choice energy in the East Bay. Tovar also spoke about community work to advance local clean energy investments—particularly for underserved communities. (7:28) CONSENT AGENDA
4. Approval of Minutes from March 18, 2026
5. Contracts Entered Into (Informational Item)
6. CAC Appointments R-2026-7
Report overview of CAC application process and resolution approving all nominations
7. FY 2025-2026 Q2 Treasurer’s Report
Update on Ava’s for FY 2026 Q3 cash position
8. 2026 Legislative Program Administrative Update (Action Item) R-2026-8 Administrative updates on legislative program for 2026
Member Fugazi requested a correction to the March 18, 2026 Board of Directors minutes to reflect that Alternate Member Blower represented Stockton, not Tracy.
A. Member Tregub motioned to pull Consent Agenda Item 6 – CAC Appointments. Member Marquez seconded the motion, which was approved 12/4/0/0/2
Ava Community Energy
Board of Directors Page | 3
Yes: Members: Marquez, Jordan, Tregub, Kaur, Keng, Roche, Barrientos, Del Catancio, Brown, Nibert, Nygard and Sakakihara
No: Members: Morada, Fugazi, Vice-Chair Gonzalez and Chair Andersen Abstain: none
Recuse: none
Not Present: Members: Diallo and Rickman
B. Member Roche motioned to approve Consent Items 4, 5, 7 and 8, including the correction to the minutes. Member Tregub seconded the motion which was approved 16/0/0/0/2 (yes/no/abstain/recuse/not present):
Yes: Members: Marquez, Jordan, Tregub, Morada, Kaur, Keng, Roche, Barrientos, Del Catancio, Brown, Nibert, Fugazi, Nygard, Sakakihara, Vice-Chair Gonzalez and Chair Andersen No: none
Abstain: none
Recuse: none
Not Present: Member: Diallo and Rickman
C. Consent Item 6 – CAC Appointments
Howard Chang, CEO, presented on the CAC Appointments item and answered questions from the Board.
Public Comment:
(36:53) Jim Lutz
(39:21) Cynthia Landry
(41:33) Jessica Tovar
(43:51) Margie Lewis
(45:57) Ed Hernandez
(48:17) Colin Logan
(51:01) Alexa Zargoza
Multiple speakers expressed concern regarding the proposed CAC appointments, particularly the potential loss of institutional knowledge and continuity. Speakers, including former and current CAC participants, also raised concerns about the process and encouraged the Board to consider alternatives such as staggered terms, retention of experienced members, and more inclusive approaches to CAC membership.
Member Fugazi motioned to approve the staff’s recommendation for Consent Item 6. Member Barrientos seconded the motion, which was approved 15/1/0/0/2 (yes/no/abstain/recuse/not present):
Ava Community Energy
Board of Directors Page | 4
Yes: Members: Jordan, Tregub, Morada, Kaur, Keng, Roche, Barrientos, Del Catancio, Brown, Nibert, Fugazi, Nygard, Sakakihara, Vice Chair Gonzalez and Chair Andersen
No: Member Marquez
Abstain: none
Recuse: none
Not Present: Members: Diallo and Rickman
REGULAR AGENDA
9. (1:17:51) CEO Report
Howard Chang, CEO, presented the CEO Report and answered questions from the Board. A written version of the report is available in the April 15, 2026 agenda packet.
There were no public comments on this item.
10.(1:20:45) CAC Report
CAC Chair Souza presented the CAC Report and answered questions from the Board.
A written version of the report is available in the April 15, 2026 agenda packet.
11.(1:22:49) Procurement Policy Update (Action Item) R-2026-9 Proposed additions to Ava’s procurement policy and contract template to more closely align with Member practices (Berkeley & Oakland)
John Perkins, Legislative Director, presented the CEO Report and answered questions from the Board.
Public Comment:
(1:34:08) Jessica Tovar
(1:36:15) Jenna Rafia Yuan
(1:38:31) Margie Lewis
(1:40:00) Colin Logan
Multiple speakers expressed support for the policy and urged the Board to make it permanent, citing concerns about impacts of ICE-related activities on immigrant communities and alignment with agency values.
Member Tregub motioned to approve the staff recommendation. Member Jordan seconded the motion.
Member Tregub accepted friendly amendments to:
1. Remove the last sentence in the Prohibition on Contracting section stating, “This Prohibition on Contracting expires on December 31, 2028”; and Ava Community Energy
Board of Directors Page | 5
2. Direct staff to return the policy to the Board for discussion and/or consideration between March and June 2029.
Member Jordan accepted the friendly amendments.
Vice-Chair Gonzalez then offered a substitute motion to approve the staff recommendation, as amended to:
1. In the Prohibition on Contracting section of the policy, replace the first sentence with the following: “Ava shall seek to not enter into a new contract or amend or extend an existing contract with any Provider of Data Brokerage or Extreme Vetting services to ICE for the purpose of immigration enforcement”;
2. In the Prohibition on Contracting section of the policy, remove the last sentence stating, “This Prohibition on Contracting expires on December 31, 2028”; and
3. Direct staff to return the policy to the Board for discussion and/or consideration between March and June 2029.
Member Jordan seconded the substitute motion, which was approved 16/0/0/0/2 (yes/no/abstain/recuse/not present).
Yes: Members: Marquez, Jordan, Tregub, Morada, Kaur, Keng, Roche, Barrientos, Del Catancio, Brown, Nibert, Fugazi, Nygard, Sakakihara, Vice-Chair Gonzalez and Chair Andersen.
No: none
Abstain: none
Recuse: none
Not Present: Members: Diallo and Rickman
12.(2:19:38) 2026 Legislative Positions (Action Item) R-2026-10 Consideration of 2026 proposed legislative positions
Sam Sadle, Principle Legislative Manager, presented the 2026 Legislative Positions and answered questions from the Board.
There was no public comment for this item.
Vice-Chair Gonzalez motioned to approve the staff’s recommendation. Member Roche seconded the motion which was approved 15/0/0/0/3 (yes/no/abstain/recuse/not present):
Ava Community Energy
Board of Directors Page | 6
Yes: Members: Marquez, Jordan, Tregub, Morada, Kaur, Keng, Roche, Barrientos, Del Catancio, Brown, Nibert, Fugazi, Nygard, Sakakihara, Vice-Chair Gonzalez and Chair Andersen.
No: none
Abstain: none
Recuse: none
Not Present: Members: Diallo, Rickman and Fugazi
Items 13–14 Not Reached
• Pursuant to the Board’s Agenda Schedule Protocol adopted on January 21, 2026, agenda items not reached by 9:00 p.m. are continued unless the Board elects to hear them by majority vote.
• As the meeting reached 9:00 p.m. prior to consideration of Items 13 and 14, and no motion was made to hear the items that evening, both items were continued to a future meeting.
13. Health-e Communities Pilot Update (Informational Item) Not heard
14.Ava Impact Report (Informational Item)
Not heard
15.(3:06:53) Board Member and Staff Announcements including requests to place items on future Board of Directors Meeting Agendas
• Member Marquez requested to consider the addition of a third At Large CAC seat and to stagger CAC appointments.
• Chair Andersen announced the opening of the City of Piedmont’s public pool, the second all-electric municipal pool in Northern California.
16.(3:08:11) Adjourn
The meeting was adjourned at 9:09 p.m.
The next Ava Board of Directors meeting will be held on Wednesday, May 20, 2026 at 6pm.