Jester Insurance Services has announced the dates for this fall’s IAMU Safety Group Insurance Seminars.
 
Tuesday, Oct. 9
Buena Vista University
610 W. Fourth St.
Storm Lake, IA 50588
9 a.m. – 12 p.m.
 
Wednesday, Oct. 24
Prairie Meadows
1 Prairie Meadows Drive
Altoona, IA 50009
8:30 – 11:30 a.m.
 
Wednesday, Oct. 31
Hilton Garden Inn
7213 Nordic Drive
Cedar Falls, IA 50613
9 a.m. – 12 p.m.
 
Please notify the appropriate personnel in your office and share these dates/times/locations with them.
 
A formal registration form will be sent in mid-August.

IAMU is once again offering the Electric Utility System Operation Short Course (EUSO) presented by Skip Collier of Professional Training Systems, Inc.
 
Skip is highly regarded and has an extensive background in electric utility design, construction, maintenance and operation.
 
EUSO Short Course:  July 31 – August 2
The EUSO Short Course is designed for any employee whose job performance will benefit from a basic understanding of the operations side of the business.  This includes those from legal, rates, engineering, purchasing, computer application, marketing, customer service, inventory control, finance, accounting, safety, risk analysis as well as those from generating plants.  One goal for this class is to have students leave with the ability to easily identify all of the electrical equipment they see in a substation as they walk by, along with all the equipment found on the poles in a residential area.  Non-electrical engineers are often at a disadvantage in the electric utility environment due to a lack of familiarity with technical issues.  The better you understand the utility’s product – electrical energy – and how it is created and distributed, the better you can serve the utility and your customers.  This course assumes no electrical background, and builds on the basics to provide a comprehensive understanding of the equipment and operations.
 
*Line Maintainer apprentices will receive 21 Basic OJT hours for taking the EUSO Course.*
 
Registration is open.
Registration fees for the course are below.
 
(*If you are planning on sending more than one participant from your organization, please make sure to share this with multiple departments so that you qualify for the reduced cost with the initial registration.)

• EUSO Course - $950 for a single registrant OR $850 each for two or more participants from the same utility/organization

For additional information, brochure, and registration, please click HERE.  The registration deadline for the workshop is Tuesday, July 24, 2018.

Mark your calendars for the IAMU Wastewater Collection System Workshop.  Sponsored by Central Iowa Televising, this new IAMU workshop will take place on Tuesday, July 17 at the IAMU Training and Office Complex.

Training topics will include:

• Putting Together Written Maintenance & Asset Management Programs
• Identifying & Eliminating I&I
• Mainline & Lateral Sewer Rehabilitation Methods
  
  

Live demos will include:

• Jet/Vac – O&M – Nozzle Selection by Mid-Iowa Equipment
• TV Truck – O&M – Mainline/Lateral Launch by Mid-Iowa Equipment
• CIPP Point Repair / Connection Liner by Central Iowa Televising
• Trench / Shoring / Confined Space Safety by Contractor Solutions

0.5 CEUs for Wastewater only.

Cost:
IAMU Members - $45.00
Non-Members - $65.00
(Includes CEUs, lunch, and breaks)

Registration is open.  For more information about the workshops, brochure, and online registration, click HERE.

You are receiving this message as part of the Iowa Department of Revenue’s ongoing effort to educate businesses and organizations about the state’s new Water Service Excise Tax (WET). 
 
Water utilities must separate WET from sales tax for collection and remittance to the Department beginning July 1, 2018.  However, in order to provide water utilities with time to make necessary programming changes, water utilities do not have to itemize WET on bills and receipts to customers prior to January 1, 2019. Beginning on January 1, 2019, WET must be separately itemized and stated on all bills and receipts, and must be identified separately from any other taxes collected, if any. The Department will not monitor how water utilities decide to separately collect and remit WET prior to January 1, 2019. 
 
Additional information about the Water Service Excise Tax is available on our website. 

You are receiving this message as part of the Iowa Department of Revenue’s ongoing effort to educate businesses and organizations about the state’s new Water Service Excise Tax (WET). The Department has received many questions from taxpayers about who is subject to WET. Detailed information, including a webinar, about WET can be found on our website at https://tax.iowa.gov/WET.
 
Only “water utilities” are required to collect WET. For purposes of WET, a “water utility” is anyone providing water to the public through a piped distribution system for compensation. Simply owning a well or other water supply does not necessarily mean you are subject to WET. In addition, taxpayers who only sell water through interior plumbing, as opposed to also owning a well or water supply, are not required to collect WET.
 
For example, a restaurant may have an on-site well that pipes water into the restaurant. If the owner of the well is not charging the owner of the restaurant for the water service, then there is no sale of water service and the well owner does not have to collect WET. If the well owner charges the restaurant for the water service, then the sale is subject to WET and the well owner would collect WET from the restaurant owner.
 
We realize that changes in how taxes are structured and collected can be confusing. More information about WET can be found at https://tax.iowa.gov/WET. You can also email your question or call us at 515-281-3114 or 800-367-3388.

The Central Minnesota Municipal Power Agency (CMMPA) and Central Municipal Power Agency/Services (CMPAS) Board of Directors is pleased to announce the appointment of Christopher Kopel as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) effective June 6. Chris has served as Interim CEO since January 2018.

“CMPAS has thrived since Chris joined the Agency five years ago as the Chief Operating Officer and most recently as Interim CEO,” said Board President Tim Stoner. “Our Board looks forward to working with Chris as we strategically advance goals to serve our public power customers.”

Mr. Kopel brings more than 25 years of power industry experience and continued stability through his tenure at the joint power agency. In 2013, he joined the Agency as Chief Operating Officer (COO) and directed transmission, wholesale power supply, strategic planning and human resources for the Agency. In his new role, Chris will continue providing strategic leadership.

“CMPAS has achieved many successes to help twelve members, eight affiliate members, and other associated public power cities prosper in Iowa, Minnesota, and Wisconsin,” said Kopel. “We have a great team and remain committed to customizing each utility’s power portfolio. I look forward to working with our partners to keep public power utilities strong.”

Prior to joining the agency, Chris served in leadership and business development roles at NextEra Energy Resources, Iberdrola Renewables, and NRG Power Marketing, as well as various regulatory, operations, and planning roles at Northern States Power Company, now known as Xcel Energy.

CMMPA and its energy management and consulting services agent, CMPAS, serve as municipal, consumer-owned, non-profit joint power agencies. In a consultative role, CMPAS identifies strategies that help public power utilities minimize wholesale power costs, manage future risks and maintain stable competitive rates.

CMPAS offers power supply planning, procurement, energy market, and related management services to help municipal utility boards address their full or partial power portfolio needs.

Mark your calendars for the IAMU Wastewater Collection System Workshop.  Sponsored by Central Iowa Televising, this new IAMU workshop will take place on Tuesday, July 17 at the IAMU Training and Office Complex.

Training topics will include:

• Putting Together Written Maintenance & Asset Management Programs
• Identifying & Eliminating I&I
• Mainline & Lateral Sewer Rehabilitation Methods

Live demos will include:

• Jet/Vac – O&M – Nozzle Selection by Mid-Iowa Equipment
• TV Truck – O&M – Mainline/Lateral Launch by Mid-Iowa Equipment
• CIPP Point Repair / Connection Liner by Central Iowa Televising
• Trench / Shoring / Confined Space Safety by Contractor Solutions

0.5 CEUs for Wastewater only.

Cost:
IAMU Members - $45.00
Non-Members - $65.00
(Includes CEUs, lunch, and breaks)

Registration is open.  For more information about the workshops, brochure, and online registration, click HERE.

IAMU is once again offering the Electric Utility System Operation Short Course (EUSO) presented by Skip Collier of Professional Training Systems, Inc.
 
Skip is highly regarded and has an extensive background in electric utility design, construction, maintenance and operation.
 
EUSO Short Course:  July 31 – August 2
The EUSO Short Course is designed for any employee whose job performance will benefit from a basic understanding of the operations side of the business.  This includes those from legal, rates, engineering, purchasing, computer application, marketing, customer service, inventory control, finance, accounting, safety, risk analysis as well as those from generating plants.  One goal for this class is to have students leave with the ability to easily identify all of the electrical equipment they see in a substation as they walk by, along with all the equipment found on the poles in a residential area.  Non-electrical engineers are often at a disadvantage in the electric utility environment due to a lack of familiarity with technical issues.  The better you understand the utility’s product – electrical energy – and how it is created and distributed, the better you can serve the utility and your customers.  This course assumes no electrical background, and builds on the basics to provide a comprehensive understanding of the equipment and operations.
 
*Line Maintainer apprentices will receive 21 Basic OJT hours for taking the EUSO Course.*
 
Registration is open.
Registration fees for the course are below.
 
(*If you are planning on sending more than one participant from your organization, please make sure to share this with multiple departments so that you qualify for the reduced cost with the initial registration.)

• EUSO Course - $950 for a single registrant OR $850 each for two or more participants from the same utility/organization

For additional information, brochure, and registration, please click HERE.  The registration deadline for the workshop is Tuesday, July 24, 2018.

1. Do some spring cleaning!

• Sweep the floor.
• Remove trash.
• Remove unused equipment.
• Remove non-electrical system equipment.
• Replace light fixture bulbs.
• Seal the room from dust.
  
  

2. Conduct annual and preventive maintenance!

• Tighten connections.
• Cycle the breakers.
• Verify all fuses are a matching set.
• Review settings in equipment to match the last coordination/arc flash study performed.
• Ask your local electrical supply house to generate a list of spare parts.
• Install spare parts shelving.
• Pressurize the room.
  
  

3. Keep safe and secure!

• Install proper safety signage.
• Ensure PPE and lockout/tagout equipment is readily available.
• Ensure all guards and covers are installed.
• Plug unused holes in equipment.
• Properly secure all enclosures and raceways.
• Install panic hardware on doors and have them swing out of the room.
• Install insulating mats for working clearance issues.
  
  

4. Ensure proper documentation!

• Redline drawings to match equipment.
• Post base documentation and charts in paper, poster, or electronic format.
• Create a directory for each motor and its location in the room to facilitate lockout/tagout.
  
  

5. Label all equipment to match documentation!

• Switchboards
• MCCs
• Panelboards

Adapted from EC&M’s online magazine. Submitted by Doug Post on April 12, 2017