Finance and Audit Committee March 12, Minutes

Transcription

1 Finance and Audit Committee March 12, 2007 Minutes Chairman Bruce Scherr called to order a duly noticed meeting of the Finance and Audit Committee at 10 a.m. CDT on March 12, A copy of the meeting agenda and list of attendees are attached as Exhibit A and Exhibit B respectively. Antitrust Compliance Guidelines Chairman Scherr acknowledged the NERC Antitrust Compliance Guidelines. Minutes The committee approved the February 12, 2007 draft meeting minutes (Exhibit C). Cost Allocation and Collection Issues Chairman Scherr recognized the comments that were received in advance of this meeting and opened the discussion for all interested parties to raise their concerns. The discussion focused on the following topics: The need for greater transparency and participation of the industry in the budget development process. The need to recognize the content of the MOUs that are signed with Canadian authorities and who has responsibility for compliance activities. Recognition of cost drivers and real benefits derived from activities performed by NERC and the regional entities. The concern of double payment specifically in compliance activities mandated by statute. After hearing the discussion the committee asked staff to develop an allocation policy to address the concerns heard. The policy should include the following points: Limited to compliance activities at the regional entity level. Should apply to jurisdictions outside the United States. Statute in a jurisdiction requires different responsibilities. Agreements with NERC will recognize these differences. Staff was also tasked with expanding the budget development process to allow three to four additional points of participation by the industry Village Boulevard, Princeton, New Jersey Phone: Fax:

2 Future Meetings and Conference Calls April 13 conference call (10 a.m. EDT) May 1, 2007 meeting (Washington, D.C.) June 8 conference call (10 a.m. EDT) July 13 conference call (10 a.m. EDT) August 1, 2007 meeting (Vancouver, B.C.) October 22, 2007 (Dallas, Texas) Adjournment There being no further business, Chairman Scherr adjourned the meeting at 11:55 a.m. CDT. Submitted by: Joseph K. Conner Treasurer Finance and Audit Committee 2 March 12, 2007 Meeting Minutes

3 Exhibit A Finance and Audit Committee Meeting/Conference Call March 12, a.m. 2 p.m. CDT Hilton O Hare O Hare International Airport Chicago, Illinois Dial-in: Code: Agenda 1. Antitrust Compliance Guidelines 2. February 12, 2007 Draft Meeting Minutes Approve 3. Cost Allocation and Collection Issues Discussion Review comments 4. Future Meetings and Conference Calls April 13 conference call (10 a.m. EDT) May 1, 2007 meeting (Washington, D.C.) June 8 conference call (10 a.m. EDT) July 13 conference call (10 a.m. EDT) August 1, 2007 meeting (Vancouver, B.C.) October 22, 2007 (Dallas, Texas) 5. Other Village Boulevard, Princeton, New Jersey Phone: Fax:

4 Exhibit B Attendee List for March 12, 2007 NERC Board of Trustees Finance and Audit Committee Meeting Bruce Scherr, FAC Chairman Frederick Gorbet, FAC Member Kenneth G. Peterson, FAC Member Donald P. Hodel, FAC Member Richard Drouin, NERC Chairman Rick Sergel, NERC David Cook, NERC Attendees In Person Attendees Via Conference Call Joe Conner, NERC Caroline Dupuis, Regie d l energie Gilbert Neveu, Regie d l energie Catrina Martin, WECC Debbie Reed, RFC Ed Schwerdt, NPCC CBRE John Q. Anderson, Board Member Thomas W. Berry, Board Member Sharon L. Nelson, Board Member Ken Brown, PSEG Roman Carter, Southern Company Gerry Cauley, SERC Reliability Corp. Yves Dellaire, Hydro Quebec Dave Dworzak, EEI Tim Egan, CEA Tim Gallagher, RFC Steve Hickok, BPA Lorne Midford, Manitoba Hydro Scott Smith, SPP Marlo Spence-Lair, CEA Kim Warren, IESO Mike Yealland, IESO Charles Yeung, SPP

5 Exhibit C Finance and Audit Committee February 12, 2007 Minutes Open Session Chairman Bruce Scherr called to order a duly noticed meeting of the Finance and Audit Committee at 8 a.m. on February 12, A copy of the meeting agenda is attached as Exhibit A. Present at the meeting were: Committee members: Bruce Scherr, Chairman; John Anderson; Jim Goodrich; Fred Gorbet; Sharon Nelson; and Dan Skaar. An attendance list of others present is attached as Exhibit B. Antitrust Compliance Guidelines Chairman Scherr acknowledged the NERC Antitrust Compliance Guidelines. Open/Closed Meeting Session Etiquette David Cook, NERC Vice President and General Counsel, reviewed the format for the open and closed sessions of the meeting. Minutes The committee approved the October 31, 2006 draft meeting minutes (Exhibit C). Annual Calendar of Activities Revisions Joe Conner, NERC CFO, reviewed the committee s annual calendar of activities and recommended that no changes be made at this time. First Quarter Mandate Items Joe Conner reviewed the first quarter mandate items (Exhibit D) Business Plan and Budget Joe Conner discussed with the committee the 2008 budget timeline, which included milestone dates for NERC s budget development and approval, as well as the review and approval of the budgets from the regional entities. The budget timeline is attached as (Exhibit E.) Joe also reviewed some cost allocation a collection issues raised by several entities. Joe informed the committee that a schedule is being set to solicit comments and discuss theses issues with the interested parties. He also reported that the Regional Entity Budget Group will be scheduling meetings to build consistency with the format and presentation of the budget Village Boulevard, Princeton, New Jersey Phone: Fax:

6 Treasurer s Report Joe Conner reviewed the unaudited December 31, 2006 Treasurer s Report. He stated that the actual expenses were $498,000 over the 2006 budget and $30,000 higher that the 2006 projection that was included in the 2007 budget. The primary reason for the excess expenses was legal fees associated with ERO development, which were intentionally not budgeted. Future Meetings and Conference Calls March 12 meeting (Chicago, IL) April 13 conference call (10 a.m. EDT) May 1, 2007 meeting (Washington, D.C.) June 8 conference call (10 a.m. EDT) July 13 conference call (10 a.m. EDT) August 1, 2007 meeting (Vancouver, B.C.) October 22, 2007 (Dallas, Texas) Closed Session The committee went into closed session at 8:25 a.m. Submitted by: Joseph K. Conner Treasurer Finance and Audit Committee Open Session 2 February 12, 2007 Meeting Minutes