Ubits November / December 2015
James and the giant requests
FOR THE RECORD
Dec. 31 Incentive Goal Forms Due
Thanks to Al Martinez of Customer Solutions for taking the great cover photo.
In this issue
Public Disclosure Requests 101 As a public entity, TPU must provide records when the public asks. Recently, that included employee ID badges with photos and workrelated text messages on personal phones. Although those two items might feel more personal than record-like, Washington’s Public Records Act says they’re fair game.
Why, you ask?
What is the person requesting those items looking for? TPU’s Public Disclosure Officer James Kauffman doesn’t know, nor can he ask. The essence of public disclosure law is that it’s not an employee’s place to decide what the public should and shouldn’t know — so most information must be shared regardless of why it’s requested. There are exemptions outlined in the law’s 65 sections, and it’s only in those details and court decisions that government agencies have reason to redact parts of or deny a
Page 2
Q & A with Chris Robinson
Page 3
request. Personal contact information, financial account numbers, Social Security numbers and attorney-client privileged information are common redactions.
How does it work?
Within five days of receiving a request, TPU has to acknowledge and respond with either the information requested, a denial, an estimate on how long it will take to gather the items or ask clarifying questions. Straightforward requests that could be fulfilled quickly used to be the norm, but things have changed. “The scope of requests has exploded,” James said. “We’ve gone from simple requests that ask for an employee’s emails, to requests asking for any and all documents that an employee has created for time periods as great as a year. That means collecting and combing through emails,
Community Connection
Continued on page 7
Page 6
A day in the life
Q&A with Chris Robinson Tacoma Power Superintendent
Q A
In what direction are you taking Tacoma Power? With the help of all employees, I intend to steer a course that maintains and enhances our current success. Our utility is in great shape, our finances are strong, our employees are committed, our customers are satisfied and our culture is healthy. With that said, the environment we operate in and the challenges we’ll face are constantly changing. We must evolve and continually improve to be successful. In order to figure out how to do that, we need a strategic plan — a roadmap for success. The Tacoma Power management team and I began the development of such a plan in July. Thus far in the process, we have focused on what’s called “situational analysis.” It sounds fancy, but really it’s simple, facilitated conversations across a broad group of people to identify our greatest strengths, the challenges and threats we face, and what opportunities we have to overcome those challenges. A long list of stakeholders throughout TPU, board members and the mayor will also be interviewed to get their perspective on things. We intend to use this and other information to plot our course forward and identify what things we must focus on to be successful. A communication plan for sharing the strategic plan is also being developed. Ultimately it’s our employees who will deliver on the strategy, so good communication about the plan’s priorities will be a huge part of our success. My goal is to have the strategic plan complete in the first quarter of 2016.
Q A
What challenges lie ahead for Tacoma Power? A few that are top of mind are continuing to meet increasing customer expectations, getting our work done without employee burnout, and the significant number of retirements
Pg. 2
expected to come. On customer expectations, we need to continue to up our game and better understand the needs and wants of our customers. Historically, we haven’t had a lot of information about our customers. That’s now changing with TPU’s new market research group. The research results will be reflected in the new strategic plan and will shape our customer communications, products and services. As for employee burnout, we know our organization is spread thin in some areas. To help, the section managers are doing a human resources analysis. It’s a process where each section looks at the work they do and whether they have enough resources to do it. With the results, we’ll work to prioritize better, move resources where they’re needed most and possibly even hire more people. On the wave of retirements to come, we’ll be challenged to capture employees’ knowledge, recruit top talent, develop new leaders and maintain our organization’s culture. Those challenges and others will be addressed in the strategic plan.
Q A
What’s most important to you in your new role? I want to continue Tacoma Power’s success. I plan to do that by focusing on excellent customer service; ensuring employees are successful, engaged and satisfied in their careers; maintaining the utility’s culture; and adapting to changes in our industry and business environment.
QA
What are your short-term goals? I have a number of them, but I’ll share the top one: determining a path forward for Click! I know from my own personal experience that uncertainty about one’s job and future is the worst kind of stress. Because of that, I’ve been intimately involved with the process of
“On the wave of retirements to come, we’ll be challenged to capture employees’ knowledge, recruit top talent, develop new leaders and maintain our organization’s culture.” informing our policymakers in hopes of finding a resolution soon. But it’s not up to me or Director Bill Gaines. Ultimately, our policymakers will decide what comes next and when.
Q A
How do you differ from the past Tacoma Power superintendent? We are much more alike than different. I reported to Ted Coates for 14 years. As my mentor, he coached me on developing a management style with high values. We both believe in doing the right thing (even if it’s the hardest thing), listening to people and caring about them, hiring the very best, and focusing on customers. Many of the initiatives that Ted championed will continue. What’s different about us is our communication styles. Employees will find that I’m pretty direct in terms of the direction our organization is going and how we’ll get there.
Community Involvement Incentive Goal forms due by Dec. 31 Cross something off the busy holiday season to-do list now! Don’t wait to complete, document and turn in Community Involvement Incentive Goal forms. They’re due by 5 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 31. Use the online form from any computer at MyTPU.org/IncentiveForm. If necessary, employees can complete paper forms in the TPU Human Resources office or Community & Media Services office. There’s no exception for missed deadlines. Eligible submissions must include: A total of eight hours of eligible activities
n
At least four hours of volunteer work for a 501(c)3 nonprofit serving the poor or infirm
n
No more than four hours of eligible donation credit
n
Volunteer activities performed within TPU’s service territory
n
Ineligible submissions will be returned to employees within two weeks of receipt. Corrected submissions are due by the Dec. 31, 5 p.m. deadline. Employees can earn the Community Involvement Incentive Goal time as long as they have earned at least one Business Unit Goal and been employed with TPU for six months during the calendar year. For more Community Involvement Goal information, check out Unet or call Erika Tucci at 502-8225.
Upcoming events Don’t miss these last few chances to earn Community Involvement Incentive Goal time:
My Sister’s Pantry
Serve clients a hot meal and help them choose food from the food bank.
Food Repack
Pack dried, fresh or frozen bulk product into family-sized bags for distribution to the 67 food banks, meal sites and shelters served by the Emergency Food Network.
Adopt-a-Family
Donate basic need items like toiletries and clothing for foster children and adults. Wish lists for individuals and departments who registered for the program will be available in early November.
Salvation Army mall volunteers
Volunteers receive an hour credit for each hour worked or gift donated (up to four donation hours). To sign up, watch Newsline for more details or contact Erika Tucci at 502-8225.
Give through the Giving Tree Help a child or senior who may not otherwise receive a gift this holiday season with the Salvation Army’s Giving Tree. Starting around Thanksgiving, gift tags will adorn Giving Trees in the Executive Offices and Tacoma Rail. Grab one or a few! Child tags have toy suggestions for a specific age and gender. Due to the transient nature of homeless or struggling families, it’s too difficult for the Salvation Army to collect and distribute gifts for
specific families. Instead, donated toys are set up in a store-like environment, where parents shop for gifts. Senior tags have a specific request for a specific person. The Salvation Army works with local assisted living facilities to make sure seniors who don’t have regular visits from friends or family still receive a gift and recognition. This is typically the only gift they get. Last year, TPU employees donated 185 senior and children’s gifts, making TPU
the second largest Giving Tree in Pierce County, following the main tree at the Tacoma Mall.
How to Prepare Gifts
Leave children’s gifts unwrapped so parents can see their options when shopping in the “store.”
n
Wrap seniors’ gifts and write the recipient’s name on the package.
n
Attach the Giving Tree tag on all gifts.
n
Pg. 3
bits & pieces
New map gives customers outage information With the storm season in mind, Tacoma Power has developed an outage map that customers can find on TPU’s website. The map shows: Outage locations
n
Number of customers affected
n
Time the outage started and estimated time of restoration
n
Status and cause of the outages
n
While this map moves TPU closer to what many customers have been asking for, it’s only a temporary solution. The utility is working on developing technology that will be mobile friendly and enable interactive features like online reporting of outages. For now, customers can go to MyTPU.org/OutageMap to find out the status of outages in Tacoma Power’s service area.
Tacoma’s water part of national study Tacoma Water is partnering with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in a study to help scientists learn more about the link between water and health. Here’s how it works: Customers who are selected to participate will be mailed a letter explaining the study, followed by a survey packet. Selection is random.
n
The survey asks about a household’s recent water use and health. Questions can be answered in a paper packet or online.
n
Personal information and answers to survey questions will be kept private.
n
The study is being conducted over the next two years. Tacoma Water’s participation doesn’t mean there’s anything wrong with its water; it meets all federal regulations for safety and health. Rather, the utility is volunteering to participate because this is a chance to help answer important scientific questions and make sure our community is represented in this national effort.
Pg. 4
Tacoma Water negotiates a favorable new franchise agreement Working well with neighbors can be a challenge for many. That’s not the case for Tacoma Water and Pierce County. The two recently negotiated a new plan for working together in unincorporated Pierce County where the utility provides service. Called a franchise agreement, the 15-year contract spells out what Tacoma Water must do to operate, maintain and construct its water system in the area that makes up about 25% of the utility’s customers and brings in $17 million in revenue annually. It replaces a 50-year agreement that expired in April this year. Whether Tacoma Water is replacing a water main or the county is widening a road, the two have mutually beneficial, agreed-upon requirements for project notification, responses, timing, design standards and right-of-way impacts. Those aren’t the only terms that benefit Tacoma Water’s customers. Having a franchise agreement is one requirement for Tacoma Water to be given a “utility in good standing” rating with the county. With that, the utility is allowed to do certain work without permits. When one is required, they’re less costly or even free. “With so much of our system and customers in unincorporated Pierce County, it’s really important to have a good relationship with the county and a solid franchise agreement that allows us to work well together,” said Deputy Water Superintendent Heather Pennington, who negotiated the agreement.
Kudos for those who helped Snohomish County PUD restore power In late August, gusts of wind, falling tree branches and a car vs. pole collision caused 80 outages all over TPU’s service territory. Crews worked around the clock for 36 hours to restore power to 19,000 TPU customers. But they didn’t stop there! Snohomish County PUD still had 23,000 customers without power, so seven Tacoma Power line electrician crews headed north to help out. Customers turned to social media to share their appreciation. Many recognize the hard work, sacrifice, long hours and risk that employees endure to restore service. Here are a few things customers had to say about the crews’ work at home and in Snohomish County: “You at TPU are the champions of getting it done! Thank you from the bottom of our hearts! Your hard work is so appreciated! Hopefully you will get some rest and time with your families soon.”
n
“Two a.m. and a crew is outside in the dark and rain to restore our power! You’re all great. Thank you so very much.”
n
“Proud of our crews. Really did a great job. Good luck and be safe in Sno Co.”
n
“Appreciate the efforts. Saw your trucks out there plugging away. Stay safe!”
n
“Just drove to the grocery and saw all of your crews out and about working. Seems you certainly have your work cut out for you. We appreciate you! Always impressed with your rapid response. Great work, everyone!”
n
“Thanks to the crews away from their families, working all day and night in this weather to make sure others get heat and light. Some people don’t even think how the crews’ families are also out of power.”
n
“Thank you, line workers, for all that you do!”
n
Want to read more about outages and what customers have to say? Watch Newsline for similar information after large outages.
MANY SHOES TO FILL
A day in the life of a natural resource biologist As 25-pound salmon make their way up the Green River to spawn on this September day, some stop off at Tacoma Water’s Trap and Sort Facility near the Headworks. They climb a fish ladder to a holding tank where biologist Tyler Patterson waits for them to jump onto a fish-sized water slide so he can count and sort them as they slide on down. That process is just one of many at the Trap and Sort Facility. It’s also one of the many things Tyler does in his job to monitor, protect and restore fish and their habitat in the Green River Watershed. His responsibilities are as varied as the shoes that line the floor under his desk: rubber boots, waterproof waders, hiking boots and flipflops. On this particular day, Tyler wears each of them while he sorts the fish, drives them to a state hatchery and monitors river flows.
Rubber boots
Half of Tyler’s day is spent at the Trap and Sort Facility, where he completes two rounds of sorting fish. Based on the sex, type and origin, Tyler calls out “keeper” or “hatchery” as each fish makes its way down the sorting slide. In response, another employee uses a remote to open one of two swinging doors that work like a pinball machine to sort the fish into two different chutes. Salmon spawned in the wild are keepers. They’re sent to one holding pen, while hatchery-spawned salmon go down another leading back to the river. Gently moving screens corral the wild “keepers” into a large metal cage that’s lifted by crane from the holding tank to the transport truck — a flat-bed with a 500-gallon water tank welded to it. Before that happens, Tyler carefully calibrates the temperature and oxygen level of the tank water to match that of the state hatchery pens. Ensuring similar water temperatures is one of many regulations Tyler complies with to reduce the shock and stress fish undergo
Pg. 6
in the trap, sort and transport process. Out of the 140 fish sorted for the day, Tyler drives 23 of them 20 miles to the state hatchery. There, the wild fish are bred with hatchery spawned fish to diversify the genetics of fish that will be released into the rivers in the spring.
Waders
Back at the Headworks, Tyler sets out to collect water samples. He drives on a well-maintained gravel road that winds through mountainous forest. He’s headed to Eagle Lake, from which Tacoma Water is pumping water to send down the Green River to add to the flow and help fish. Along the way, Tyler points out an old train trestle from the 1800s and talks about how decades of land owners over-harvesting timber contributed to the watershed’s troubles. His background in fisheries and watershed managment provides knowledge for the restoration work he does now. He says he knows much of the utility’s fish and habitat work will not be fully recognized in
“It’s exciting to be part of something bigger and working with employees, a utility and network of other agencies who deeply care about these issues and have a passion for improving this.” his, or even his children’s, lifetimes, but that does not reduce his passion. “It took 150 years to get the fish in this position, and it will take generations to fix that,” Tyler said. “But it’s exciting to be part of something bigger and working with employees, a utility and network of other agencies who deeply care about these issues and have a passion for improving this.”
At Eagle Lake, three pumps force water into 12-inch pipes that carry 20 million gallons of water a day into a stream that flows into the north fork of the Green River. Tyler treads into the lake and collects a test tube of water. He climbs the bank, crosses the gravel lot that’s been set up to house generators, lights and work trailers for the project, and hikes down to the stream. There he collects another sample. When compared over time, the two samples will show the turbidity, or cloudiness, of the water before, during and after pumping.
Hiking boots
The comparison provides data needed for reporting to the agencies that granted permits for the pumping project. Writing reports and ensuring permit requirements are met is a large part of Tyler’s job. When the season for fish runs is over and the Trap and Sort Facility closes, Tyler spends much of his time trekking through the outdoors. He surveys fish and wildlife habitats, plans improvements and monitors what those efforts do for watershed health and fish returns. The expertise and information Tyler gathers during his work is used in studies, planning efforts and technical reports. It’s also shared with other stakeholders along the Green River and at the regional level with neighboring watersheds.
Flip-flops
After a day surrounded by water, Tyler slips out of his boots and into flip-flops, a change that signifies the day is done and it’s time to dry out.
Who’s new around here
Tyler Braun Professional Engineer Tacoma Power
Johnathan Britton Safety Officer Tacoma Power
Brian Lundeen Matthew Hubbard Treena Colby Program Manager Natural Resources Biologist Associate Engineer Tacoma Power Tacoma Water Market Development
Shuhua Liang Utilities Economist Tacoma Power
Who’s ready to relax The following employees retired in September:
Clint Heidelberg Hydro Assistant Project Manager Tacoma Power
Christopher Noyes Natural Resources Biologist Tacoma Power
Randy Krueger, senior project manager with Tacoma Water, retired after 5 years of service. Francis Tong, senior principle engineer with Tacoma Power, retired after 10 years of service.
Public Disclosure Requests continued from page 1 storage, papers in file cabinets and electronic documents on computers, thumb drives and shared drives.”
Frivolous request or not?
James has found that when people cast such a wide net with their requests, it’s often because they don’t quite know what they’re looking for. To help, he asks clarifying questions. The result is often good for both TPU and the person requesting the information. Requestors get exactly what they want and the utility has a more manageable request. Other times, TPU gets what’s referred to as “frivolous requests”— those frequent requests that come from the same person, with vague parameters or a large scope. They may be intended to overwhelm government agencies so they’re open to lawsuits for not correctly complying with the law. The only option for dealing with such requests is to work with lawyers to identify eligible exemptions. Although
frivolous requests are not the norm, they’re the kind TPU employees are more likely to hear about because they take months and a whole team to respond to.
Technology — friend or foe?
When websites, smartphones and social media are added to the mix of sources for information requested, determining how to collect the wanted information gets harder. The complexity of some requests has required TPU to buy software and hire experts to extract hard-to-get records like text messages. The joint TPU-City of Tacoma Information Management System (TIMS) project will help gather records in the future. The idea is that using SharePoint for all document storage will allow specialized software to electronically search records for requested keywords or documents.
What to do?
Until the time when computers can do the record-gathering work, employees must
do the heavy lifting. Taking records management training to know what’s a record and disposing of non-records when they’re no longer needed are good places to start. That will help reduce the amount of information that has to be read and considered in response to requests. Employees can also help by quickly gathering and responding to James’ requests for records. To avoid having personal devices searched in response to public requests, employees should use utility-owned equipment for email, texts, photographs and other work. It’s also a good idea, James said, to consider what type of controversial news headlines could come from a request for documents, emails or Internet searches made with utility resources. “The law doesn’t allow us to exclude something from our response just because it’s embarrassing,” James said. “The whole idea of the law is transparency, and for the public to know what its government is doing.”
Pg. 7
Tacoma Public Utilities PO Box 11007 • Tacoma WA 98411
PRSRT STD US POSTAGE PAID TACOMA WA PERMIT NO 2
Actual
Proposed
HENDERSON BAY
Replacing the last of the Potlatch line Tacoma Power has started a project to replace the towers and power lines that cross Henderson Bay off Highway 16 in Purdy. There are four towers in Henderson Bay: two in Burley Lagoon and two straddling Highway 302 on the Purdy Spit. The plan is to replace the four lattice towers in the water with one steel pole, and to replace the four adjacent lattice towers on land with four steel poles.
Ubits is a publication for Tacoma Public Utilities employees and is provided as a courtesy to retirees. Jenae Elliott, editor ubits@cityoftacoma.org • (253) 502-8754
Piece of history
The Henderson Bay crossing is the third of three marine crossings on the Potlatch Transmission Line that Tacoma Power will replace. The Narrows and North Bay crossings were replaced by Tacoma Power in 2006 and 2014. All were part of the original Cushman Hydroelectric Project dedication by President Calvin Coolidge in 1926. The transmission line provides electrical power to Tacoma Power directly and to
Peninsula Light by way of an agreement with the Bonneville Power Administration. At 90 years old, the original towers and foundations have reached the end of their useful life.
Deciding factors
While a number of replacement options were studied, the one chosen offers the least impact to the environment, people in the area and ratepayers. James Blessing in Tacoma Power’s Transmission & Distribution is leading the team working on the $6 to $8 million project. The project costs will be determined by the final design and the awarding of material and construction contracts. The team plans to begin the permitting process later this year. Engineering design and permitting will continue through 2016. Construction is planned for 2017 and 2018.