• The meeting on Oct. 26, 2017, was called to order by Chairman Tom Crowe at 6:30 p.m., and Jason Barnhorst kept minutes of the meeting.
• All members of the board were present. Also present were DCREMC CEO Brett Abplanalp, Karen Forshee of DCREMC and Brian Christenberry from Indiana Electric Cooperatives.
• Christenberry led a discussion concerning PACs that represent electric cooperatives at the state (FORE) and federal levels (ACRE). The board agreed that each board member would contribute $75 to FORE and $25 to ACRE for 2017.
• A financial report was given by Karen Forshee and was reviewed on Call to Order. She reported that revenues are down 1.7 percent. This is the LE (latest estimate). Controllable expenses are expected to be down nearly $275,000 for 2017, mostly due to lower payroll, benefits, training, and lower distribution and general plant expenditures.
• Forshee asked that all directors complete their intended travel and training forms for 2018. This information will be used in the 2018 budgeting process.
• 2018 budget meeting will be Tuesday, Nov. 21, 2017.
• Upon motion made by Jeff Lawrence, seconded by Lawrence Young, and carried, the consent agenda of the meeting was approved by unanimous vote.
• Brett Abplanalp gave his CEO, safety, and outage reports as prepared on Call to Order. He and his team are currently working on the strategic pillars and measurements for each area.
• Jeff Lawrence brought up concerns over the cost of the right-of-way maintenance spraying that has been done so far and the quality of that work. Abplanalp will look into this.
• The Hoosier Energy report was given by Dan Schantz. Hoosier’s new rate realignment will begin in April 2019. The new rate will be comprised of 45 percent demand and 55 percent energy charges. This rate structure is being built into our new cost of service study. Hoosier Energy is currently investigating participation in a large solar farm in an effort to bring more renewable energy to its membership.
• IEC board update was given by Roy Friedersdorf. The annual meeting for IEC will be held Dec. 4 and 5 at the JW Marriott in downtown Indianapolis. Membership voting options were discussed, as several IEC cooperatives are changing their bylaws to accommodate alternative voting options for their members. IEC’s 2018 budget has been approved, and DCREMC dues will be lower by $978.
• Hometown Energy — Regulators that need to be changed for customers will total approximately $22,000.
• The cost of service study is underway. It is expected that Larry from Prime Group will have a preliminary report for the committee to review by mid November. This will be the first COSS done for DCREMC based on real use data, so it is taking longer to compile all the information.

Old Business:

• Abplanalp updated the board on the master project list. The 2018 budget first drafts are due tomorrow to Karen Forshee. The union contract negotiations are going well, and all non-monetary terms have been settled. Hoosier Energy’s legal department is reviewing the Honda contract and those negotiations continue.
• Upon motion by Jason Barnhorst, seconded by Steve AmRhein, and carried, Roy Friedersdorf was elected as IEC representative by unanimous vote.

New Business:

• Abplanalp presented his wage and salary plan that will go into effect Jan. 1, 2018. This will be a performance-based review for all employees. Salary increases will be determined by a combination of inflation and merit review.
• Abplanalp presented a new vehicle policy that will go into effect immediately. The new policy will require all company vehicles to be marked with the DCREMC logo, and returned to headquarters each night. The full policy can be reviewed on Call to Order.
• Jeff Lawrence asked the board to consider reallocating 2015 capital credits. Abplanalp is going to contact legal counsel and determine if it can be done, and what the cost might be.
• Upon motion by Lawrence Young, seconded by Steve AmRhein, and carried, the meeting was adjourned at 10:02 p.m.