Board Members Elected at SMECO Meeting

Southern Maryland Electric Cooperative elected members to its board of directors Aug. 23 at its 78th annual customer-members meeting. The meeting was held at Regency Furniture Stadium in Waldorf, where it has been held since 2009.

The following members were elected to serve on SMECO’s board for three years: W. Michael Phipps of Calvert County; Gilbert O. Bowling and Richard A. Winkler of Charles County; James A. Richards of Prince George’s County; and Scott White of St. Mary’s County. Customer-members also voted to accept bylaw amendments which provide a framework for the cooperative to conduct all voting by mail beginning next year.

In his remarks, SMECO’s President and CEO Austin J. Slater Jr. focused on the cooperative’s direction for the future. Slater described the fundamental difference between co-ops and other electric companies as the ability for the members of the cooperative to vote each year for their representatives on the SMECO board. While the cooperative has approximately 134,000 members, only 742 members registered at the meeting and 140 members voted by absentee mail-in ballot.

Members voted to amend the bylaw that outlines requirements for meetings and voting, which positions SMECO to conduct voting by mail. The board of directors proposed the amendment to improve customer-member participation in the election process. Beginning in 2017, all members will receive a ballot in the mail, and all ballots must be returned by mail prior to the annual meeting. The meeting, which will be strictly a business meeting, will be held at a smaller venue, and there will be no entertainment, no food and drinks, and no attendance prizes. Election results will be announced at the meeting, but no voting will occur on site.

In other matters, SMECO has installed 12,000 new smart meters as part of its automated metering infrastructure program. According to Slater, the new meters are expected to provide better customer service, improve outage response time, increase efficiency, and save money.

After smart meters are installed throughout its service area next year, SMECO estimates that the technology will save upwards of $5 million per year in operational costs. He explained that these meters represent the “new normal” in the electric industry and that current meters are becoming obsolete.

SMECO is actively pursuing additional large-scale solar projects, Slater said. In addition, SMECO receives an average of 45 applications per week for rooftop solar projects. WattPlan and PowerClerk are two online tools the cooperative uses to assist customers who are interested in installing solar panels at home.

Megan Mattei of Leonardtown High School was the guest speaker at the meeting. Mattei participated in the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association 2016 Youth Tour in Washington, DC, and she was selected as Maryland’s delegate for this year’s Youth Leadership Conference. In March 2017, Mattei will also attend NRECA’s annual meeting in San Diego, CA.

In the concourse of the stadium, SMECO hosted informational displays about its customer programs and services, including a smart meter display. Co-op personnel were on hand to provide information about energy-efficiency programs and energy rates, and they were asked to enroll in the Members Helping Members program to help less fortunate residents keep their power on. Many customer-members participated in a scavenger hunt by visiting each display table and learning about the co-op’s programs. Participants were rewarded with T-shirts printed with “Getting Smarter Together” across the back to promote SMECO’s smart meter program.

Richard Winkler, chairman of the SMECO Board of Directors, welcomed SMECO’s customer-members to the ball park and called the meeting to order. J. Ernest Bell II of Leonardtown served as the meeting chairman, a role he has played since 1999. Joe Lehan, voice of the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs, served as the emcee for the entertainment prior to the meeting. The College of Southern Maryland jazz band, Solid Brass, performed a one-hour set and customers won prizes for bingo games. The Rev. Mariann Babnis, interim rector of Christ Church in Port Republic, led the invocation. The Gwynn Park High School Air Force Junior ROTC presented the colors, and the Southern Mix Chorus performed the national anthem at the beginning of the meeting. Each customer-member who registered received an insulated tote bag.

Registered members were eligible to win one of 50 electric bill credits of $50 each. In addition, winners of 15 cash prizes of $100 each and a well-traveled SMECO vehicle were randomly selected from the registered members in attendance.

Derrick Berry of Mechanicsville won the SMECO vehicle, a 2006 Ford F-150 4×4 pick-up truck with 107,000 miles.

Winners of $100 cash attendance prizes from Charles County were Betty Brooks, Tina Ford, Leonard Lentz, JoAnn Duckett, Mary Adler, Paula Adair, Samuel Nelson, Kenneth Gage, Andrew Lewis III, and Everett Gantt.

Winners of $100 cash attendance prizes from Calvert County were Carolyn Cunningham representing the South Gate Home Owners Association and Richard Morin.

Winner of $100 cash attendance prize from Prince George’s County was John Richards.

Winners of $100 cash attendance prizes from St. Mary’s County were James Bowling III and Robert Cross.

Vote totals

Calvert County (one seat available)

W. Michael Phipps  754 votes

Charles County (two seats available)

Gilbert O. Bowling 646 votes

Vernecia C. Smith 263 votes

Richard A. Winkler 625 votes

Prince George’s County (one seat available)

James A. Richards  729 votes

St. Mary’s County (one seat available)

Scott White  750 votes

Bylaw Amendments

Article III, Meetings of Members votes for 637, against 120

Nearly 80 years ago, when rural areas needed electricity, cooperatives were created. Visionary men and women helped to form the Southern Maryland Electric Cooperative. SMECO now provides electric service to 160,000 customers in Charles County, St. Mary’s County, southern Prince George’s County, and all but the northeast portion of Calvert County.

Cooperatives are distinctly different from investor-owned utilities because co-ops are owned by their customers. Customer-members elect the men and women who serve on the Board of Directors. Customer-members share the responsibility of ownership by financing the cooperative’s operations, but they also share its rewards.

To learn more about SMECO please visit their Leader Member Page.