These NW Natural Executives made the political decision to give $25,000 of shareholder profits to promote increasing Oregon's highest property taxes by a whopping potential of $452/year for the average Portland home owner and renter.
Gregg S. Kantor
President & Chief Executive Officer
David H. Anderson
Senior Vice President & Chief Financial Officer
Lea Anne Doolittle
Senior Vice President
Margaret D. Kirkpatrick
Vice President & General Counsel
Stephen P. Feltz
Treasurer & Controller
David R. Williams
Vice President of Utility Services
MardiLyn Saathoff
Chief Governance Officer, Deputy General Counsel & Corporate Secretary
C. Alex Miller
Vice President of Finance and Regulation
J. Keith White
Vice President Business Development and Energy Supply & Chief Strategic Officer
Grant M. Yoshihara
Vice President of Utility Operations
These are the responsible adults who wouldn't think for a minute to omit accurate, complete maintenance and capital costs from NW Natural's annual budget. And yet they are willing to support a public bailout of the Portland Public Schools, an institution that is the exemplar of mismanagement of public funds, despite the fact that PPS has omitted the true maintenance, capital and unfunded liabilities costs from PPS budgets for decades.
These are the NW Natural executives that advocate raising property taxes on their own NW Natural customers - WITHOUT ASKING US.
These are the people that will pass on $31,418 in potentially increased property taxes on NW Natural property to their ratepayers.
These are the people that will cause $66,145 in potentially increased property taxes on Portland General Electric property to be passed to their ratepayers.
Small businesses throughout Portland will be hit especially hard with dramatically higher property taxes or rent, and increased utility bills that will either reduce their incomes or be passed along as higher costs on goods and services to their customers.
And the low-income and poor? Well, they will get screwed as they always do. Where are the protests from the Housing Authority of Portland defending their section 8 clients from the inevitable rent hikes? And is hypocrite a strong enough word to describe "housing" commissioner Nick Fish who is actively supporting the PPS tax that will increase costs for public and so-called affordable housing?
The very well paid, out of touch, recession-proof-salaried men and women in the business suits seated around the large, shiny mahogany table in the lofty, glass encased executive conference room suite at NW Natural will NOT feel the pain of customers and citizens. Their substantial ratepayer derived income and benefits package will insulate them from any personal discomfort. They will delude themselves into thinking that they are doing good while denying that they are actually PPS mismanagement enablers.
NW Natural and other contributors to the PPS tax increase are "enablers", those who by their rescuing actions make it easier for an addict to continue their self-destructive behavior. They are giving the "alcoholics" at the Portland Public Schools a "last truckload of gin" if PPS promises to end its mismanagement of public funds when they sober up after one final drunken spree. The PPS "mismanaging taxaholic" needs rehab NOT another bottle and a bailout.
In summary. Some of the money we pay to NW Natural for our utility bills is being used to pay the salaries of the NW Natural executives mentioned above. These NW Natural executives spent $25,000 for a political purpose, NOT sanctioned by ratepayers, which could have the effect of substantially raising our property taxes as well as our NW Natural and Portland General Electric bills. All of this to rescue the adult mismanagement of public funds by the Portland Public Schools board and staff.
As a satisfied NW Natural customer I am nonetheless outraged at this arrogant political act by a utility I have always held in high regard. Now I object. This is wrong. This is NOT how I expect a Public Utility to behave. Supporting good works in the community - YES. Promoting tax increases - NO, NO, NO.
This political activity must not be condoned by the Public Utility Commission and Oregon legislators.
These are the NW Natural board of directors:
Russell F. Tromley
Chairman of the Board, Tromley Industrial Holdings, Inc. and NW Natural
Timothy P. Boyle
President & Chief Executive Officer, Columbia Sportswear Company
Martha L. Byorum
Senior Managing Director, Stephens Cori Capital Advisors
John D. Carter
Chairman of the Board, Schnitzer Steel Industries, Inc.
Mark S. Dodson
Former Chief Executive Officer, NW Natural
C. Scott Gibson
President, Gibson Enterprises
Tod R. Hamachek
Former Chairman & Chief Executive Officer, Penwest Pharmaceuticals Company
Gregg S. Kantor
President & Chief Executive Officer, NW Natural
Jane L. Peverett
Former President & Chief Executive Officer, British Columbia Transmission Corporation
George Joseph Puentes
Former President, Don Pancho Authentic Mexican Foods, Inc.
Kenneth Thrasher
Chairman of the Board, Compli Corporation
They are not directly responsible for the decision to bail out the mismanaged Portland Public Schools. However, they are now put on notice that they can and should direct their staff, see names above, to demand a return of the $25,000 to the NW Natural bank account. Employees of all the companies connected to the NW Natural board, including and especially those who work for NW Natural and will be subject to the PPS property tax increase, should speak up.
Please email me at stopppstax@goodgrowthnw.org . Just say, "I'm In" as the subject. Include contact information and, if you like, a short note. Tell your friends, relatives and neighbors to contact me too. Use whatever social media you like to spread the word. Join me on Wednesday February 16th from 11:30 AM to 1:30 PM in front of Portland city hall to object to the behavior of NW Natural Executives and encourage a NO vote on the PPS tax increase on the May ballot.
Richard Ellmyer
Thirty-Five years of political activism. Leader of two successful efforts in 1999-2000 to stop proposed neighborhood destroying outdoor amphitheaters at PIR and the Expo Center.
Former progressive, socially liberal, fiscally conservative candidate for the North Portland House seat in the May 2010 primary. Defeated by establishment Democrat Tina Kotek, who supports the PPS property tax increases as she has every other tax bill in Salem.