Redding City Council’s two newest members stuck to their guns Tuesday and joined the majority in a 4-1 vote to disband an advisory commission that had become a rallying cry for a small but boisterous crowd of Tea Party conservatives.
Councilman Gary Cadd cast the lone vote to keep the Electric Utility Commission, a seven-member panel that was established 20 months ago to oversee Redding’s giant electric utility and give recommendations to the council.
New council members Brent Weaver and Kristen Schreder, in explaining their votes, said they wanted their information on utility matters to come direct from the utility itself.
“I do not want an advisory committee filtering it,” Weaver said. “I want to take it straight from the professionals.”
Schreder said she, too, wanted to deal directly with the Redding Electric Utility staff. “I’m very capable of asking good questions, getting information and making good decisions,” she said, noting that when it comes to the utility, “ultimately, it is the council’s responsibility.”
Councilwoman Missy McArthur, who originally proposed dismissing the EUC in December, said she voted against establishing it in the first place. The utility was shorthanded then and it is now, McArthur said. “This is a business decision … the EUC is eating up staff time.”
Cadd has argued that the commission serves a valuable watchdog role and that its cost, estimated at $45,800 a year, was a drop in the bucket compared to the utility’s $165 million budget.
McArthur denied her actions were in retaliation for the move by Cadd and former council member Patrick Jones to create the commission. And she noted the utility, which is controlled by the council, recently had the ratings of its financing instruments bumped up from A to A-plus by Fitch Ratings. “And that’s us, not the EUC. We’re the gold standard.”
Adam McElvain, chairman of the EUC, spoke briefly to the council and reiterated that its seven members “worked hard to get up to speed.” With a rueful smile, he asked that the council consider presenting commissioners “with one of those fancy clocks” to acknowledge the time spent by the volunteer members.
Bob Reitenbach, one of several speakers sporting the green and yellow State of Jefferson shirts, was a little blunter in his comments. “This board (the EUC) is the best thing Redding has going for it. Which one of you has any idea how to run the REU?” he asked, before adding, “you’ve already proven you don’t know what you’re doing.”
“What are you trying to hide?” asked Gary Hollahan with an exaggerated sneer. “We need a watchdog commission.” The frequent council critic, who is a retired English teacher, went on to induct all council members except Cadd into the “Oops Club,” whose name is an acronym of terms including “obtuse,” “obfuscating” and “snollygosters.”
(Snollygoster is defined as “one, especially a politician, who is guided by personal advantage rather than by consistent, respectable principals.”)
Redding attorney Walt McNeill used a little more tact, telling the council the EUC offered an effective “heat shield” for some looming difficult decisions, including issues with Redding’s involvement in a coal-fired energy plant in New Mexico and the ongoing litigation over the REU’s PILOT (payment in lieu of taxes) payments to the city’s general fund.
“There’s a lot of emotion here,” Weaver noted. Yes, he agreed, council members do work for “we the people—and we also work for all the people,” including those who may not feel comfortable speaking in public before a hostile audience. “I care about oversight and I care about departments running correctly.”
Jon Lewis is a freelance writer living in Redding. He has more than 30 years experience writing for newspapers and magazines. Contact him at jonpaullewis@gmail.com.
