The BWL Board of Commissioners as currently configured does not provide effective governance. Too often it accedes without adequate investigation to proposals from management, including plans for spending tens of millions of dollars on new capital projects and setting rate increases. The Lansing city charter defines the role of the Board of Commissioners and the way rate increase proposals are considered, among other things. In order to make the Board of Commissioners more responsive to the community, more transparent, and more effective, the charter commission should consider the following:

​

• Make the process and selection of members to all boards and commissions more transparent and a joint responsibility of the city council and the administration. Currently, the process is opaque and does not serve the residents well. We believe that a more open process will ensure better representation on all boards and commissions.

• The Board of Commissioners of the Lansing Board of Water and Light (BWL) should remain an independent administrative board, as it is now. However, the Board of Commissioners should be restructured to include two city council members or designees. BWL is a $420 million a year company, and the owners, i.e. the residents of the city, deserve a governing board that will hold management accountable, not routinely approving their requests with no probing questions or independent analysis. The Model City Charter Provisions from the American Public Power Association describes under its “General Provisions” on page 1 a structure that includes representatives of the administration and/or city council. Our proposal does not hew too far from that model.

• Members of boards and commissions should serve no more than two consecutive terms. Appointed positions are not the same as elected positions. Unlike elected offices where experience has shown that term limits do not lead to better governance, the direct opposite is true for appointed positions. The Model City Charter document explicitly supports this position by unequivocally saying: “No commissioner shall serve for more than two consecutive terms.” (p. 1, “Organization of the Board”, (b) Appointment and tenure)

• The internal auditor should be appointed by the city council rather than the Board of Commissioners. This would ensure that the auditor can offer a truly independent opinion when investigating processes and controls within BWL.

• Reform the processes for rate setting and capital funding for large projects.

• Give the non-Lansing members of the Board of Commissioners a vote. It makes no sense to invite other municipalities to participate in the governance process but without a vote. That renders their presence nearly meaningless. At your November 26 meeting, you heard Bob Worthy, the Delta Township representative, express his frustration with the current situation. We strongly support his view that it must change.

​

Charter changes specifically related to BWL that CAFE supports:

​

ARTICLE 3 – LEGISLATIVE BRANCH

Chapter 4. INTERNAL AND EXTERNAL AUDITS

3-401 Internal Auditor

.8 The Internal Auditor shall audit the activities of the Board of Water and Light.  Whenever appropriate the Internal Auditor shall promptly make a report to the City Council on City agencies or any irregularities of practice and erroneous accounting methods with recommendations for improving the accounting procedures and systems of the agency. All requests for rate increases shall be audited to determine the necessity for the increase.

​

ARTICLE 5 – BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS

Chapter 1. GENERAL PROVISIONS FOR BOARDS

5-103 Appointment of Board Members

.2 Except as otherwise specifically provided in this Charter or State law, the Mayor, Clerk and two City Council members, selected from sitting Council members, shall jointly appoint persons to all such boards, commissions and committees with the advice and consent of the Council.  No such appointment shall be effective until the Council has confirmed it.

.8 With the exception of administrative boards, each Board established by this Charter shall be composed of eight members. Four members shall be from the City at-large and one member shall be appointed from each of the four wards of the City. Administrative boards shall be composed of eight members. Two members shall be from the City Council, two members from the City at-large and one member shall be appointed from each of the four wards of the City.

.12 The Board of Water and Light Board Members shall include three voting Board members representing utility customer communities outside the City of Lansing. Each voting Board member from outside the City of Lansing shall be a Board of Water and Light customer, shall reside in and be appointed by the governing body of the municipality. One member shall represent the City of East Lansing and shall serve a term of four (4) years commencing July 1. One member shall represent Delta Township and shall serve a term of four (4) years commencing July 1. One member shall be at-large and shall represent the remaining municipalities and shall serve a term of one (1) year commencing July 1. The at-large representative shall serve on a rotating annual basis and be appointed by the governing body of the following municipalities in succession: Meridian Township, Delhi Township, DeWitt Township and Lansing Township. Except as provided herein, Section 2-103, Section 5-105, or State law, the provisions of this Charter shall not apply to the voting Board members of the Board of Water and Light who reside outside the City of Lansing.

.13 No person shall be appointed for more than 2 consecutive terms to any board or commission. After 2 consecutive terms, board members shall not be eligible for reappointment for at least 1 year. Individuals are not precluded from appointment to a different board or commission at the end of their second consecutive term.

​

Chapter 2. BOARD OF WATER AND LIGHT

5-201 Board of Water and Light

.2 Members of the Board of Commissioners shall be compensated for their service on the Board. The City shall, by ordinance, determine the compensation or the procedure for determining the compensation of members of the Board of Commissioners.

5-202 Director, Secretary

REMOVE 5-202.2.

5-203 Powers of the Board

.12 The Board may issue bonds for capital improvement projects, such as but not limited to construction of new power plants, wastewater treatment facilities, etc. For any project that exceeds $50,000,000 ($50 million) in projected construction costs, the public hearing and comment process must be followed. 

.13 Public Hearing and Comment

When required, the Board shall conduct a public hearing and accept written comments . The public hearing shall be conducted at least 10 business days prior to the date of the Board meeting immediately preceding the meeting for the vote on the matter by the Board of Commissioners. Notice of the public hearing shall be given 45 business days before the hearing. Written public comment shall be accepted up to the meeting date for the Board’s vote on the matter. The Board shall publish on its website responses to all comments made at the hearing and submitted in writing more than 20 business days before the meeting for voting on the matter at least 5 business days before the meeting date for Board voting on the matter..

5-205 Rates

.4 The public hearing and comment process as stated in section 5-203.13 must be followed before any rate increases are voted on by the Board.

​​