Dear Members:
Thank you to everyone who joined us for our 2025 annual member meeting. If you missed it, a recording of the meeting can be viewed by searching Plumas-Sierra Rural Electric Cooperative (PSREC) on YouTube and selecting the Live tab.
It was a full house with a delicious dinner served by Paul and Sheri Roen. 1 lucky member went home with a $500 electric bill credit.
Member and Energy Services Manager Emily Compton announced the winners of the 2025 PSREC Photo Contest, as well as the scholarship and Youth Tour winners.
The American Legion Post #329 of Portola opened the meeting with the presentation of colors. Rev. Jesse Hodson, of the Doyle Pentecostal Church, gave the invocation.
Jane Cirricione, assistant general manager of legislative and regulatory affairs of the Northern California Power Agency; Michelle Williams, senior vice president and Sierra Nevada regional manager for the Western Areas Power Administration; and Jessica Nelson, general manager of Golden State Power Cooperative, provided updates on the electric industry during the meeting. They discussed key issues facing cooperatives and the electric utility industry, including power supply, wildfire, and affordability.
Board President Fred Nelson reviewed accomplishments for the year, including the progress made on Plumas-Sierra’s Fort Sage transmission project. The project is partially funded by a Defense Community Infrastructure Grant. PSREC anticipates the project to be completed by the end of 2027. Lastly, Fred discussed the 12 telecommunication grants the cooperative is working on. Thanks to these grants, more than 1,000 electric poles will be replaced at no cost to the membership.
As part of the general manager’s presentation, I described how the federal government and the states set rules for grants and how eligible addresses are determined. I spoke about the cooperative’s ability to soon be able to buy power from both California and Nevada, and the reliability the Fort Sage project will bring to PSREC members. I updated the membership on the progress on the latest grants Plumas-Sierra Telecommunications has received from the Federal Funding Account and the California Advanced Services Fund, and where those grant projects are located.
For more information on our broadband services, visit the PST website. In addition, I expressed my gratitude to PSREC employees for their hard work in keeping the lights and internet service on for our members. The board and I are so proud of the employees of PSREC and PST throughout the past year.
We also had a Q&A session, where I addressed member questions, including questions about fiber-optic service availability, electric vehicles, and storage. The topic of rates also came up. PSREC has no plans for a rate increase at this time. We will monitor precipitation in California this winter and determine whether we need a Wholesale Power Cost Adjustment in early spring.
The board of directors is the governing body for PSREC and PST. They set policy, strategic direction, rates, and budgets. The board members attend classes and work hard to understand the complexities of the electric utility industry and the telecommunications business. We thank them for their hard work and commitment to PSREC.
The membership elected Dick Short, District 2, and David Hansen, District 5, as directors.
I’d like to thank Emily Compton and Will Marquette for their efforts in planning the annual meeting, as well as the employees who volunteered at the event.
WRAP Program
PSREC offers a discounted rate for qualifying members through the Winter Rate Assistance Program. The discounted rate is available for November through April for electricity use to income-qualified members.
For more information and an application, visit our website or call (530) 832-4261.
If you have questions, contact me by phone at (530) 832-4261 extension 6076 or by emailing Bob Marshall.
Sincerely,
Bob Marshall
General Manager