SUMMARY OF AUGUST’S BOARD MEETING

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Posted on Nov 04 2025 in Decatur County REMC

CALL TO ORDER

Chairman Steve AmRhein called the regular meeting of the Decatur County REMC Board of Directors to order at 5: 32 p.m., and Steve Nobbe recorded the minutes. All board members were present, as were CEO Brett Abplanalp and employees Matt Raver and Crystal Greathouse.

APPROVAL OF AGENDA

Jason Barnhorst moved to approve the agenda as presented. Brian Scheidler seconded the motion, which was approved unanimously.

SAFETY MOMENT AND COOL MOMENT

Abplanalp began the meeting with a safety moment, focusing on call before you dig – 811. For the cool moment, he congratulated the four linemen who participated in the lineman rodeo.

APPROVAL OF PREVIOUS MEETING MINUTES

Suzanne Parmer moved to approve the minutes of the July 23, 2025, regular board meeting. Barnhorst seconded the motion, which was approved unanimously.

OPERATIONAL AND STRATEGIC OVERSIGHT

Abplanalp requested that the board enter executive session to discuss the fiber project update from the Indiana Broadband Office (IBO), as the IBO requires this information to remain confidential. The board entered executive session at 6: 15 p.m. and returned to regular session at 7 p.m.

Following the executive session, Abplanalp provided updates on several ongoing projects, including meter pole replacements, the meter replacement project, the transition to a new after-hours call center, the implementation of the new bill print, and capital credit retirements.

Abplanalp then presented company performance metrics, highlighting the following:

  • The median temperature in July was 5.1% warmer than the five-year average.
  • Wholesale energy purchases increased by 7.3%, with demand rising slightly by 0.1% compared to the five-year average.
  • Year-to-date energy sales were 3.74% above budget.

FINANCIAL OVERSIGHT

Raver presented the financial update for July, noting the following:

  • The net utility plant increased by $220,289 compared to the previous month.
  • Year-to-date revenues were $594,349 above budget.
  • Power costs are over by $495,022, resulting in a gross margin over budget of $433,077 YTD.
  • Controllable expenses were under budget by $67,451.
  • The ending cash balance for the month was $1.2 million, driven from recent borrowings.

BUDGET APPROVAL

Abplanalp informed the board of several building maintenance issues that were not identified when the budget was prepared. He noted that quotes for the necessary repairs are still being collected and will be presented at the September board meeting for approval.

POLICY APPROVAL

Policy 1-8: Director Fees and Expenses were reviewed, along with supporting market data. Redline changes to directors compensation were proposed to introduce incentives based on completing various levels of board training certifications.

Barnhorst moved to approve Policy 1-8 as presented.

Dale Wernke seconded the motion, which was approved unanimously.

AFFILIATED ORGANIZATIONS/BOARD COMMITTEES

Barnhorst updated the board on Hoosier Energy business. AmRein updated the board at the last IEC board meeting.

ADJOURNMENT

Carl Riedeman moved to adjourn the meeting, and Scheidler seconded it. The motion was approved unanimously, and the meeting was adjourned at 9: 17 p.m.