Board of Directors Meeting Minutes
Wharfinger Building, Bay Room (downstairs)
1 Marina Way, Eureka, CA 95501
Thursday, January 22 2026
3:30 PM
Attendance
Present
Scott Bauer Carlos Diaz
Michael Gerace Skip Jorgensen
Jason Ramos Elise Scafani
Sarah Schaefer (left at 6:58 p.m.) Jack Tuttle
Sheri Woo (left at 5 p.m.) Frank Wilson
Mike Wilson *
* Director Mike Wilson participated remotely with just cause, travel for state agency business. There was no one present at the remote location with him during this meeting.
None Absent
Staff and Others Present
Name Title
Ken Beals Information Technology Technician
Lori Biondini Director of Business Planning & Finance
Elizabeth Burks Executive Director
Faith Carlson Regulatory & Legislative Policy Manager
Ronnie Chaussé Acting Finance Manager
Nancy Diamond RCEA Legal Counsel
Richard Engel Power Resources Director
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Roku Fukui Local Government Partner Program Manager
Lori Taketa Board Clerk
Patricia Terry Northern Rural Energy Network Senior Portfolio Mgr.
Eileen Verbeck Deputy Executive Director
Open Session
Chair Bauer called a meeting of the Board of Directors of the Redwood Coast Energy Authority to order at the above location and date at 3:32 p.m. Notice of this meeting was posted on January 17, 2026.
Board Appointments
2.1. Election of Officers and Community Advisory Committee Liaison Appointments There were no public comments on this agenda item.
M/S: M. Wilson, Schaefer: Appoint Michael Gerace as RCEA Board Chair and Sarah Schaefer as Vice Chair to serve through January 2027 and authorize them as signers on RCEA bank accounts.
The motion passed with a unanimous roll call vote. Ayes: Bauer, Diaz, Gerace, Jorgensen, Ramos, Scafani, Schaefer, Tuttle, F. Wilson, M. Wilson, Woo. Noes: None. Absent: None. Abstain:
None.
M/S: Schaefer, Scafani: Appoint Sarah Schaefer as Board Liaison and Scott Bauer as Alternate Liaison to the Community Advisory Committee to serve through January 2027.
The motion passed with a unanimous roll call vote. Ayes: Bauer, Diaz, Gerace, Jorgensen, Ramos, Scafani, Schaefer, Tuttle, F. Wilson, M. Wilson, Woo. Noes: None. Absent: None. Abstain:
None.
Director Bauer facilitated the remainder of this meeting.
2.2. Board Finance Committee Member Assignment
There were no public comments on this agenda item.
M/S: Bauer, Scafani: Continue the standing Finance Committee and appoint Chair Gerace and Directors Bauer, Jorgensen, Ramos and F. Wilson to serve on the Finance Committee for one-year terms ending on February 28, 2027.
The motion passed with a unanimous roll call vote. Ayes: Bauer, Diaz, Gerace, Jorgensen, Ramos, Scafani, Schaefer, Tuttle, F. Wilson, M. Wilson, Woo. Noes: None. Absent: None. Abstain:
None.
Reports from Member Entities
Director Woo reported that the Humboldt Bay Municipal Water District Board voted to withdraw from both the RCEA and Redwood Region Economic Development joint powers agreements effective March 1. The directors thanked Director Woo for her committed service since 2011. Director Woo also reported on the 1/22/26
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Water District’s involvement in fighting the recent Arcata fire. Water District staff ran pumps with generators due to higher PG&E daytime rates and there was adequate water pressure and supply. Vice Chair Schaefer reported on the countywide effort to contain the fire.
Chair Gerace reported that the Yurok Tribe, through its construction corporation Merk Confederated, will fund and begin planned battery storage and a solar array installation, the initial components of a microgrid with islanding and backup capabilities. These assets were originally planned as part of the Tribal Energy Resilience and Sovereignty project which won, then lost, Federal funding support. The Tribe is planning a 1 to 1.5 MW Ke’pel Creek hydroelectric system to generate energy for the microgrid.
RCEA may wish to discuss involvement in this project in the future.
Director Mike Wilson recommended RCEA Board Director attendance at the upcoming CivicWell Policymakers Conference in March and at the California Climate and Energy Collaborative Forum in June.
Oral & Written Communications
There were no non-agenda item public comments.
Consent Calendar
5.1. Approve Minutes of November 24, 2025, Board Meeting.
5.2. Approve Disbursement Reports for October and November 2025, and Financial Reports for this Fiscal Year Through November 2025.
5.3. Receive Federal Activity Report.
5.4. Approve the 2026 RCEA Board of Directors Meeting Calendar.
5.5. Provide Suggestions for This and Future Policy Platform Updates, and Accept 2026 RCEA Policy Platform.
There were no requests from the public or directors to remove items from the Consent Calendar.
M/S: Scafani, Schaefer: Approve all Consent Calendar items.
The motion passed with a unanimous roll call vote. Ayes: Bauer, Diaz, Gerace, Jorgensen, Ramos, Scafani, Schaefer, Tuttle, F. Wilson, M. Wilson, Woo. Noes: None. Absent: None. Abstain:
None.
Staff Reports
7.1. Executive Director’s Report
Executive Director Burks summarized RCEA’s community outreach efforts during the past month, and:
• Announced RCEA’s sponsorship program which will award $25,000 to local organizations for activities or projects that can further RCEA’s presence and mission in the community. • PG&E will implement its base services charge in March 2026. The billing change is meant to provide relief for customers, especially in high-heat areas. Locally, however, customers with low energy use will see an increase in their bills.
• RCEA received one complimentary registration for the Civic Well Policy Maker’s conference and can support a Board member’s travel to the event, and to other RCEA-related education events. 1/22/26
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Begin Community Choice Energy (CCE) Business
CCE Business Consent Calendar
8.1. Adopt Resolution 2026-1 Adopting the Updated Energy Risk Management Policy.
No one from the public nor the Board requested separate discussion of the CCE Business Consent Calendar item.
M/S: Jorgensen, Schaefer: Approve Community Choice Energy Consent Calendar item.
The motion passed with a unanimous roll call vote. Ayes: Bauer, Diaz, Jorgensen, Scafani, Schaefer, Tuttle, F. Wilson, M. Wilson. Noes: None. Abstain: None. Non-Voting: Gerace, Ramos, Woo. Absent: None.
Old CCE Business
10.1. Power Charge Indifference Adjustment Update (Information only) Regulatory and Legislative Policy Manager Carlson explained the Power Charge Indifference Adjustment (PCIA), where it appears on customer bills, how it affects how much Community Choice Aggregators like RCEA can charge for electricity and still remain competitive with the investor-owned utilities, and recent changes to how the PCIA is calculated that severely impact CCAs. The directors discussed actions the CCAs are taking to try to change the PCIA calculation method, and how in other states with CCA’s the PCIA charge usually ends in 10 years. California is the only state where the PCIA persists without a sunset date. Staff asked the directors to help educate legislators with whom they meet about this issue.
There were no public comments on this agenda item.
10.2. Energy Risk Management Semi-Annual Report
Power Resources Director Engel described RCEA’s declining electricity load, which appears to be caused mostly by local population decrease and business closures. Business Planning and Finance Director Biondini outlined how RCEA handles customer debt, efforts to get customers on payment plans and the relatively small, but expected, amounts recovered by RCEA’s collection agency. PG&E’s decreased generation rates combined with increased PCIA charges for RCEA customers are expected to result in about $15 million less in electricity sales revenue than expected. This is projected to result in negative $1.1 million net revenue this year and negative $6.6 million in the next fiscal year. If RCEA maintains a generation rate that is slightly less than PG&E’s, RCEA’s cash on hand is projected to steadily decline from $44 million to $2.1 million at the end of 2028. Different rate change scenarios and their impact on customer bills were described. Staff asked the board for short-term direction on RCEA customer rates relative to PG&E’s rates for 2026. Staff will update the Board on the cost-of-service rate study currently underway at a future meeting and alerted the Board that action would need to be taken soon. Staff asked the Board to convey to the community RCEA’s value beyond affordability in the form of local control, energy efficiency programs and jobs. There were no public comments on this agenda item.
End of CCE Business | Resume RCEA General Business
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Old Business
12.1. Community Advisory Committee (CAC) Member Appointments and Recruitment Deputy Executive Director Verbeck described current CAC vacancies and committee changes with the Water District’s departure from RCEA. Vice Chair Schaefer and Director Bauer volunteered to serve on an ad hoc committee to review at-large applications and recommend appointees. There were no public comments on this agenda item.
M/S: Bauer, Schaefer: Reappoint Ethan Lawton, Benjamin Fordham, and Dennis Leonardi to the Community Advisory Committee for Two-Year Terms Ending on March 31, 2028.
The motion passed with a unanimous roll call vote. Ayes: Bauer, Diaz, Gerace, Jorgensen, Ramos, Scafani, Schaefer, Tuttle, F. Wilson, M. Wilson. Noes: None. Absent: Woo. Abstain: None.
New Business
13.1. Presentation on Northern Rural Energy Network (NREN) 2028-31 Business Plan NREN Senior Portfolio Manager Terry described successful uptake of NREN energy efficiency programs during the program’s launch year both in Humboldt County and in other rural Northern California counties. Plans for the next business cycle include offering the same programs to an expanded area including Yolo and Trinity Counties and other rural, unserved counties identified through a market characterization study. There were no public comments on this item.
M/S: Schaefer, Ramos: Approve submission of the 2028-2031 Northern Rural Energy Network Business Plan Application to the California Public Utilities Commission.
The motion passed with a unanimous roll call vote. Ayes: Bauer, Diaz, Gerace, Jorgensen, Ramos, Scafani, Schaefer, Tuttle, F. Wilson, M. Wilson. Noes: None. Absent: Woo. Abstain: None.
13.2. Baker Tilly Engagement for Redwood Coast Airport Microgrid and Electric Vehicle Charging Station Tax Credits
Deputy Executive Director Verbeck reported that RCEA auditor Baker Tilly determined that the airport microgrid (RCAM) and RCEA’s electric vehicle charger network were eligible for tax incentives through the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act. RCAM is eligible for $1.6 million in investment tax credits. The EV charging network is eligible for $40,000 in credits, but filing costs make this credit not worth pursuing.
There were no public comments on this item.
M/S: M. Wilson, Schaefer:
1. Approve an amendment to Baker Tilly Advisory Group, LP Master Service Agreement to increase the not-to-exceed amount by $31,000 for a total not-to-exceed of $80,500.
2. Approve scope of work 2 with Baker Tilly for the preparation and filing of Investment Tax Credit documents for the Redwood Coast Airport Microgrid project.
The motion passed with a unanimous roll call vote. Ayes: Bauer, Diaz, Gerace, Jorgensen, Ramos, Scafani, Schaefer, Tuttle, F. Wilson, M. Wilson. Noes: None. Absent: Woo. Abstain: None. 1/22/26
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13.3. PG&E Local Government Partnership Contract to Provide Energy Efficiency Services Change Order
Program Manager Fukui described recent projects with Local Government Partnership (LGP) including the Arcata Community Center and rural fire stations. The LGP program provides no-cost energy assessments, project management and planning support, and help securing loans for energy efficiency projects, among other supportive services for local government agencies, schools, commercial businesses and Tribes. Staff encouraged facility managers to contact RCEA for a no cost energy efficiency assessment. There were no public comments on this item.
M/S: Schaefer, Scafani: Approve a Change Order to the PG&E Local Government Partnership Contract to extend the term through 2027, increase the budget by $799,992, and make amendments to the program design and authorize the Executive Director to execute all applicable documents after review and approval of RCEA General Counsel.
The motion passed with a unanimous roll call vote. Ayes: Bauer, Diaz, Gerace, Ramos, Scafani, Schaefer, Tuttle, F. Wilson, M. Wilson. Noes: None. Absent: Jorgensen, Woo. Abstain: None.
13.4. Discuss Regional Climate Action Plan Implementation Executive Director Burks described RCEA’s past involvement in the countywide Regional Climate Action Plan and asked the directors whether they would support RCEA hosting the Regional Climate Program Manager staff position and Regional Climate Committee to coordinate the Plan’s work. The directors discussed Humboldt County Association of Governments’ role in the Plan’s implementation, how having a climate action officer makes jurisdictions and Joint Powers Authorities eligible for additional funding, RCEA’s involvement in half of the Climate Action Plan’s measures, and how RCEA’s Strategic Plan describes the agency’s role as a regional energy planning and coordination leader, specifically in assisting climate action plan implementation. After inquiring about staff bandwidth and funding concerns, the directors expressed support for further exploring RCEA hosting the position.
Colin Fiske, submitting written comments as the Executive Director of the Coalition for Responsible Transportation Priorities, supported further exploration of RCEA coordinating Regional Climate Action Plan implementation.
Future Agenda Items
Director Bauer requested Information on what RCEA control of regional electricity transmission and distribution would entail and how it has been accomplished with power cooperatives, public utility districts and cities in other areas. The Yurok Tribe is investigating ownership of the grid in Tribal areas and could benefit from RCEA’s research.
Closed Session
15.1. Real Property Negotiations Pursuant to Government Code § 54956.8 in re: APN 001-135-007:
RCEA negotiator: Executive Director; Owner’s negotiating party: Wells Commercial: Under negotiation: price and terms.
15.2. Conference with Legal Counsel: Deciding whether to initiate litigation, pursuant to Government Code Section 54956.9(d)(4).
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15.3. Public Employee Performance Evaluation, pursuant to Government Code § 54957: Executive Director.
15.4. Conference with Labor Negotiator, pursuant to Government Code § 54956.7. RCEA designated representative, Board Chair; Unrepresented employee, Executive Director.
There were no public comments on the closed session items. The Board adjourned to closed session at 5:38 p.m. and reconvened in open session at 6:59 p.m. Director Bauer stated that there was nothing to report from closed session. The meeting was adjourned at 7 p.m.
Lori Taketa
Clerk of the Board