Western Interstate Energy Board of Directors

Agenda
Meeting of the Board of Directors
of the Western Interstate Energy Board

Double Tree Lloyd Center

Portland, Oregon

April 3-4, 2006

casual attire (no ties)

Schedule of Meetings

Monday April 3, 2006	Tuesday April 4, 2006	Wednesday April 5, 2006	Thursday April 6, 2006
WIEB Board Meeting 1:00 - 5:00 p.m.	WIEB Board meeting 8:30 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.	CREPC meeting 8:30 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.	CREPC meeting 8:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.

Monday, April 3

12 noon	Luncheon for Board members

1:00 p.m.	Call to order
	Outline agenda

	Approve minutes of February 2006 Salt Lake City and September 2005 San Diego meetings

	Report on Board and Committee activities

	Presentation on proposed FY 2006-2007 work plan and budget (action on the work plan/budget would be taken on Tuesday after discussion of future Board and WAG activities). [workplan presentation]

	Election of officers

2:15 p.m.	Priorities of Western Governors and role of the Board
	· Next steps and potential post-June actions on the Clean & Diversified Energy Initiative
	o Pam Inmann, WGA Executive Director (via conference call) [presentation]
	· Emerging energy issues in Washington, D.C.
	o Kevin Moran, WGA Washington, D.C. Director (via conference call)
	· WRAP work on climate change
	o Patrick Cummins, WGA (via conference call)
	· Expiring WGA energy-related resolutions
	Western States Energy Policy Roadmap
	Protecting the Reliability of the Western Electric Power System
	o Doug Larson, WIEB

3:30 p.m.	Break

3:45 p.m.	Regional Carbon Sequestration Partnerships
	· Reports from four western partnerships (via conference call)

	Ed Steadman, Plains CO2 Reduction Partnership [presentation]
	Susan Capalbo, Big Sky Carbon Sequestration Partnership [presentation]
	Larry Myer, West Coast Regional Carbon Sequestration Partnership [presentation]
	Brian McPherson, Southwest Regional Partnership on Carbon Sequestration [presentation]

	Background material
	Plains CO2 Reduction Partnership
	Big Sky Carbon Sequestration Partnership
	West Coast Regional Carbon Sequestration Partnership
	Southwest Regional Partnership on Carbon Sequestration

4:45 p.m.	Western energy emergency exercise in Salt Lake City on June 14-15
	· Tony Usibelli, WA [presentation]

5:30 p.m.	Recess

6:30 p.m.	Board dinner

Tuesday, April 4

8:00 a.m.	Continental breakfast

8:30 a.m.	Roundtable on recent Western state/provincial energy policy actions with particular emphasis on policies related to climate change and the regional implications of such policies

	Background material
	Alberta
	Arizona
	British Columbia
	California handout
	Colorado
	Idaho
	Montana
	Nevada
	New Mexico
	Oregon handout
	Saskatchewan presentation
	Utah
	Washington climate change handout; renewable energy handout
	Wyoming

	Background information
	Climate Change White Paper; prepared by Senators Domenici and Bingaman

10:30 a.m.	Break

10:45 a.m.	Briefing by the CEC Natural Gas Team on Joint WIEB/CEC natural gas adequacy analysis
	Jim Fore and CEC Team (via conference call) [presentation]

12:00 p.m.	Action on FY 2006-2007 Work Plan and Budget

12:30 p.m.	Lunch on your own

2:00 p.m.	Preparations for operation of a Western Interconnection Regional Advisory Body

	Overview of functions and responsibilities of a WIRAB and likely near-term issues
	· Bill Chamberlain, CA
	· Doug Larson, WIEB

	Discussion of WIRAB operational issues
	· Voting procedures
	o Review of state/provincial consumption data
	· Meeting notices and summaries
	· Procedures for petitions or presentations to the WIRAB
	· Procedures for conveying advice from the WIRAB
	· WIRAB web site
	· Staffing and budget

3:30 p.m.	Scoping of potential issues the WIRAB may need to address

	Below are several potential issues the Board may want to discuss. This discussion may help to provide a common base of information to enable Board members to move expeditiously to develop advice on specific issues if the WIRAB is created.

	· Are proposed funding mechanisms and budgets for the ERO and WECC just,
	reasonable and in the public interest?
	o Is the proposed method of collecting mandatory dues reasonable?
	What are the alternatives? How will fees affect consumers?
	o Is the proposed fee collection system equitable? Will Western consumers
	be paying for ERO activities that do not add value in the Western Interconnection?
	o Are the WECC and ERO procedures for developing and submitting proposed
	budgets to FERC and Provincial regulatory authorities reasonable?
	o What would be the estimated size of first year WECC and ERO budgets that
	would be supported bymandatory fees? When would the budget year begin?
	What are the five-year projections of WECC and ERO budgets?
	o What current and proposed WECC and ERO activities would be financed by
	mandatory fees?
	What WECC and ERO activities would be financed with voluntary contributions?
	§ Do any of the activities not financed by mandatory dues present a conflict
	with the reliability-related activities financed by mandatory dues?
	§ Are Western Interconnection Reliability Centers (which constitute a
	majority of the WECC budget) to be financed with mandatory dues?
	Should the functions of such centers be expanded or consolidated?

	Background information
	WECC funding issues (priority 2)

	· Is the governance of the ERO and WECC* just, reasonable and in the public*
	interest?
	· What should be the process for developing and evaluating proposed reliability
	standards?
	o Would an ANSI -type process or the existing NERC and WECC processes be
	adequate?
	o Should an evaluation of the costs and benefits of proposed standard be required?
	Who should do such an evaluation – WECC, ERO, FERC?
	o How must the existing WECC Reliability Management System standards and
	penalty process evolve under Section 215 of the Federal Power Act?
	o How will the deference provisions to proposed interconnection-wide
	standards be implemented?

	· What should be the process for enforcing standards?
	o What should be the penalties for non-compliance?
	o How should the process for appealing violations operate?
	o What access should the WIRAB and state regulatory authorities have to
	information on violation of standards?
	o How can public disclosure of violations encourage compliance?

	· Is the proposed ERO-WECC delegation agreement* just, reasonable and in the*
	public interest?
	o Under the agreement, how will proposed Western Interconnection reliability
	standards be developed, reviewed and approved?
	o What are the roles of WECC and the ERO in enforcing standards? In
	processing appeals? In levying penalties?
	o How will the WECC budget be developed, submitted and approved? What is
	the role of the ERO in reviewing and modifying the WECC budget?
	o Under what conditions can the delegation agreement be modified?
	o What approvals of the delegation agreement (and modifications) will be
	required from FERC, Alberta, British Columbia, and Mexico?

	· What role, if any, does the WIRAB want to play in readiness audits or
	performance reviews of WECC and the ERO?

	· How can regulatory review and approval processes in Alberta, British Columbia
	and Mexico be coordinated with FERC review and approval processes?

	· How does the WIRAB want to consult with DOE under Section 1221* of the*
	Energy Policy Act?

5:00 p.m.	Adjourn Board meeting