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Tree Trimming Improves Service For All
By: Chris Reese, President & CEO
Email: contacttheceo@sussexrec.com
There are many ways that Sussex REC is different than investor-owned utilities. An important one is our member-owners’ role in how we are run. Every account holder has the right to one vote in our yearly mail-in elections.
This privilege is not something that customers of an investor-owned electric company would get, so I urge all our members to exercise this right most people don’t have. 2024’s board election is right around the corner!
This is the Annual Report issue of Currents, which includes a report from myself and the Chairman of the Board and 2023’s financial report.
Also in this issue is the announcement of our 2024 Annual Meeting. We’ll once again be holding an Online Meeting that covers business matters and an in-person Member Appreciation Event at the NJ State Fair. Be sure to make note of the dates for each so you can get your free Fair tickets and $10 bill credit, and maybe even some prizes!
This issue also includes details on the candidates for this year’s election. Our local focus makes us special, and that’s reflected in our board of directors. Every member of our board is a current member of Sussex REC, and the same goes for any new candidates. They are recognizable faces from our community and may even be your friends or neighbors!
Our directors are elected to represent your interests in the operations of the utility. By electing them as your representative, you help guide the priorities and values of the Co-op.
Three members of our board go up for re-election each year (one seat per district). New candidates can run for open seats on the board as well. In fact, this year’s election has a contested race for our District 1 seat. You can find details on each candidate on page 7 of this newsletter so you can make an informed decision when your ballot arrives. Ballots will be sent out in late May.
In addition to voting for board members as your representatives, this year’s election also offers the opportunity for you to vote directly on a proposed change to our bylaws.
Our bylaws dictate how we handle fundamental aspects of our organization such as our requirements for membership, the structure of our board, and our obligations for our Annual Meeting. To amend our bylaws, changes must be put to our whole membership for a democratic vote. If a quorum of members approves the change, our bylaws will be amended to reflect the new rule.
The proposed bylaw change that’s on the ballot this year is one that would affect our election structure as a whole. A summary of this proposed change is available below.
With all of this in mind, be sure to cast your vote when your ballot arrives! As a Sussex REC member, we value your opinion and exist to provide you with the highest quality of service at the lowest possible cost. Don’t waste your opportunity to make your voice heard. Be a Co-op Voter!
PROPOSED BYLAW CHANGE - On your 2024 ballotSussex REC regularly reviews its bylaws and proposes updates when needed. As the world we live in changes, so must the Co-op. In the early days of the Cooperative, a nominating committee was a crucial part of the system to come up with potential candidates to serve on the board of directors, but modern communication avenues allow for the dissolution of the committee. Current Bylaw: Article IV. Directors – Section 4. Nominations: It shall be the duty of the Board of Directors to appoint annually, not later than the monthly meeting of the Board of Directors in January of each year, a committee on nominations consisting of not less than five, nor more than eleven, members of the Cooperative who shall be selected from diverse segments of the Cooperative’s service area so as to afford equitable geographic representation. No member of the Board of Directors may serve on such committee. The committee, keeping in mind the principle of geographical representation, shall prepare and post at the principal office of the Cooperative at least twenty days before the meeting a list of nominations for directors which may include a greater number of candidates than are to be elected. Any fifteen (15) or more members acting together may make other nominations by a nominating petition delivered not less than sixty (60) days prior to the annual meeting of the Cooperative to the Secretary of the Cooperative in the following described format: (a) listing, on each page of the Petition, the name of the Petition Nominee, the District and Director position for which nominated; (b) signed by at least fifteen (15) Members of the Cooperative, all of whose signatures must be affixed and dated within the sixty (60) day period immediately prior to the submission of the petition; and (c) containing, opposite each signature, the name, address and telephone number of each signer. The Secretary shall be responsible for the posting of such Petition nominations at the same place where the list of nominations made by the committee is posted. The Secretary shall be responsible for the mailing with the notice of the meeting or separately, but at least seven days before the date of the meeting, a statement of the number of directors to be elected and the names and addresses of the candidates, specifying separately the nominations made by the Committee on Nominations and also the nominations made by petition, if any. The bylaw change would allow for candidates to be nominated by written petition, rather than by a nominating committee. It would also increase signatures the potential candidates must collect from 15 to 25 active Cooperative members (one signature per account). A completed petition containing the information of each signer must be delivered to the Cooperative at least 60 days before our Annual Meeting, addressed to the Secretary of the Board. Proposed Bylaw: Article IV. Directors – Section 4. Nominations: Candidates to be elected as directors of the Cooperative shall be nominated by written petition on a form provided by the Cooperative, bearing the signatures of not less than any twenty-five (25) members with an active account (limited to one signature per account). Petition is to be delivered and received at the Cooperative by 4:30pm not less than sixty (60) days prior to the annual meeting of the Cooperative. Petition is to be addressed to the Secretary of the Cooperative in the following described format: (a) listing, on each page of the petition, the name of the petition nominee and the district number for which nominated; (b) all signatures must be affixed and dated; (c) containing, opposite each signature, the name, address, account number and telephone number of each signer. Petitions not received in a timely manner or with incomplete, untrue, or inaccurate documentation will be disqualified. The Secretary shall prepare and post at the principal office of the Cooperative at least twenty days before the meeting a list of nominations for directors which may include a greater number of candidates than are to be elected. The Secretary shall be responsible for the mailing with the notice of the meeting or separately, but at least seven days before the date of the meeting, a statement of the number of directors to be elected and the names and addresses of the candidates. Should there be only one candidate to run for the Board position to be filled by the election, being either the incumbent director or the candidate nominated from the membership by written petition as set forth in this Section of the Bylaws, the Secretary of the Board shall certify that the candidate is therefore officially without opposition. The Board of Directors then has the option to declare the candidate officially elected to the Board without necessity of voting by the members and announce or cause to be announced at the annual meeting of the members the names of the candidates elected to the Board of Directors. This option can be taken in order to save the Cooperative the cost of running a certified mail-in ballot election. |
