MINUTES
Executive Committee of the
Clean Power Alliance of Southern California
Regular Meeting
Thursday, January 18, 2024
1:30 p.m.
Meeting videos are available on CPA's YouTube Channel.
http://www.youtube.com/@CPApublicmeetings
Committee Members participated in this meeting from the following locations:
Agoura Hills City Hall
Planning Conference Room
30001 Ladyface Court
Agoura Hills, CA 91301
CPA Office
Executive Conference Room
801 S. Grand Ave., Suite 400
Los Angeles, CA 90017
Capitol Hilton
Business Center
1001 16th Street NW Washington, D.C.
20036
Camarillo City Hall
Office of the Mayor
601 Carmen Drive
Camarillo, CA 93010
Ventura County Government Center
Channel Islands Conference Room, 4th Fl
Hall of Administration
800 South Victoria Avenue
Ventura, CA 93009
Carson City Hall
Executive Conference Room
701 East Carson Street
Carson, CA 90745
Los Angeles County Hall of Administration
Sybil Brand Conference Room, Room 372
500 West Temple Street
Los Angeles, CA 90012
Ojai City Hall
Conference Room
401 S Ventura St.
Ojai, CA 93023
Sierra Madre City Hall Council Chambers
232 W. Sierra Madre Blvd.
Sierra Madre, CA 91024
South Bay Cities Council of Governments
Conference Room
2355 Crenshaw Blvd., Suite 125
Torrance, CA 90501
CALL TO ORDER & ROLL CALL
Chair Gold called the meeting to order at 1:30 p.m. and Gabriela Monzon, Clerk of the Board, conducted roll call.
Roll Call
Agoura Hills Deborah Klein Lopez Committee Member Remote Beverly Hills Julian Gold Chair Remote
Camarillo Susan Santangelo Committee Member Remote
Carson Cedric Hicks Committee Member Remote
Hawthorne Alex Monteiro Committee Member Present
Los Angeles County Lindsey Horvath Vice Chair Remote
Ojai Betsy Stix Committee Member Remote
Sierra Madre Robert Parkhurst Committee Member Remote
South Pasadena Diana Mahmud Immediate Past Chair Absent Ventura County Vianey Lopez Vice Chair Absent
All votes are unanimous unless otherwise stated.
GENERAL PUBLIC COMMENT
There was no public comment.
CONSENT AGENDA
1. Approve Minutes from November 16, 2023, Executive Committee Meeting Motion: Committee Member Parkhurst, Sierra Madre
Second: Committee Member Santangelo, Camarillo
Vote: The consent agenda was approved by a roll call vote.
REGULAR AGENDA
2. Oral Update from the CEO on CPA Operations
Ted Bardacke, CEO, provided an update on the enrollment of new customers in Hermosa Beach, Monrovia, and Santa Paula. Customers will be enrolled in March at the cities’ preferred energy option of 100% Green; opt-outs through the first three weeks, after the first notifications, are one and a quarter percent across all cities. Mr. Bardacke noted that more customers are looking at options within CPA, instead of completely opting out. Additional new customer enrollment notices will go out in February, April, and May. Ahead of the joint California Community Choice Association (“CalCCA”) / CPA Lobby Day, Mr. Bardacke and other community choice CEOs will conduct an energy system seminar in Sacramento to educate legislative staff. State Assemblymember, Blanca Pacheco, will sponsor a bill to allow non-elected alternates to substitute for elected officials in closed session, and State Senator, Anthony Portantino, will co-sponsor. Mr. Bardacke thanked Chair Julian Gold, CPA staff Gina Goodhill, and CPA’s lobbyists for their outreach work on this bill.
Committee Members Klein Lopez and Parkhurst asked about ongoing education for CPA Board members relating to legislative activity. Mr. Bardacke stated that he and Ms. Goodhill will prepare CPA Board members ahead of Lobby Day. In response to Vice Chair Horvath’s question about the focus of Lobby Day, Mr.
Bardacke responded that the primary goal is to build relationships with state government officials in partnership with CalCCA representatives. He added that the CalCCA annual meeting is scheduled for April 16-18 in San Jose.
3. Receive Presentation on 2024 Board Outlook – Major Items Mr. Bardacke reviewed upcoming Board items relating to governance & policy, energy procurement, finance/budget/rates, and customer & community programs.
In response to Committee Member Hicks’ question about education for new Board members, Mr. Bardacke described the orientation process and agreed to look at other education opportunities. Chair Gold suggested a mentorship program.
Responding to Committee Member Parkhurst’s inquiry about the Board retreat agenda, Mr. Bardacke said staff will work with ExCom on crafting the agenda; initial ideas include discussions about future expansion and workforce development.
4. Review Draft Agenda for the February 1, 2024, Board of Directors Meeting Mr. Bardacke reviewed the consent agenda, including an energy modeling software contract and a Demand Response contract amendment. Based on Executive Committee feedback, the consent agenda will also include an investment proposal in the California Asset Management Program (CAMP). The regular agenda will include power purchase agreements, two for energy storage projects to enhance reliability and the Power Ready PPA; a presentation on marketing and look-ahead; and the opening of the nomination period for Board Chair elections.
5. Recommend to the Board of Directors to Authorize Staff to i) Deposit CPA Funds Into the California Asset Management Program as an Investor ii) Amend CPA’s Investment Policy to Permit Investment in CAMP and iii) Execute the CAMP Investor Agreement and any Other Required Documents
Chief Financial Officer, David McNeil, presented the item. The Finance Committee recommended that the Board authorize staff to deposit CPA funds into CAMP, which is a well-established investment vehicle used by approximately 180 California agencies to invest short-term funds. Currently CAMP pays 2% more in returns than savings accounts or the Local Agency Investment Fund (LAIF). Staff recommends investing in CAMP as an investor rather than a participant, which requires joining the CAMP JPA. Being a participant comes with voting rights but also administrative responsibilities. As an investor, CPA has the same investment options and returns, as well as the ability to withdraw its funds from CAMP on a same-day basis, without penalty. Finance Committee Chair Santangelo reiterated the Committee’s support for investing in CAMP.
In response to Committee Member Klein Lopez’s questions about why CAMP is not better known to government agencies and the diversification of funds once CPA participates in CAMP, staff explained that CAMP has lately offered higher returns than LAIF; in addition to CAMP, CPA also invests in CDs and other smaller savings accounts. Responding to Committee Members Parkhurst and Hicks question about CAMP benefits and liquidity, Mr. McNeil clarified that CAMP does offer same-day liquidity that other investments that CD’s don’t. In response to questions from Committee Member Parkhurst and Vice Chair Horvath, staff clarified CAMP was founded in 1989 and two CCAs, Peninsula Clean Energy and Silicon Valley Clean Energy, currently invest in CAMP.
Motion: Vice Chair Horvath, Los Angeles County
Second: Committee Member Hicks, Carson
Vote: Item 5 was approved by a roll call vote.
COMMITTEE MEMBER COMMENTS
Chair Gold announced that there is a possibility that he may be appointed to the Executive Committee as a member of the public after leaving elected office at the City of Beverly Hills.
ADJOURN
Chair Gold adjourned the meeting at 2:23 p.m.