HomeMy WebLinkAboutMason County PUD re: appropriation for FY24O �CONIV
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February 27, 2023
Board of County Commissioners
1820 Jefferson Street
PO Box 1220
Port Townsend, WA 98368
Kate Dean, District 1 Heidi Eisenhour, District 2 Greg Brotherton, District 3
The Honorable Patty Murray
154 Russell Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
Re: Support for Mason County PUD No. 1's Appropriations Request for FY24
Dear Senator Murray,
The Jefferson County Board of County Commissioners (BoCC) would like to express our support for Mason County PUD No.
1's appropriations request to fund their grid resiliency project, which includes the design, engineering and feeder buildout of
a middle -mile substation at Jorstad Creek in Lilliwaup, Washington.
This project is important to our constituents in Jefferson County because it will benefit the residents living in Brinnon,
Washington. Currently there is only one Mason PUD 1 substation that feeds a 35+ mile stretch of U.S. Highway 101, along the
windy highway and the Olympic National Forest. This stretch of line is vulnerable to natural hazards like landslides, wind and
snow events, and most commonly, fallen trees from the rainforest canopy.
When one section goes out of power, the entire stretch from Mt. Walker down to Hoodsport goes out. During extreme storm
events that our region is experiencing, sometimes multiple times a year, these customers are out of power for days because
there is no redundant power supply.
Additionally, when maintenance has to occur on the Jefferson County substation, or Bonneville Power Administration has
transmission maintenance, the substation has to be taken offline and customers sit in the dark until it can all be reenergized.
This middle mile substation would enable the PUD to keep most customers in power under most circumstances thanks to a
redundant power feed. It also will allow the PUD to take their other north and south substation offline for necessary
maintenance and still keep customers in power.
Lastly, receiving congressionally directed spending for this project helps alleviate the impact on ratepayers. Utility
affordability is a key component to affordable housing and keeping residents housed and protected from making hard
financial decisions. With only 5,400 electric meters, Mason PUD 1 experiences the same challenges large utilities do with
infrastructure but with far fewer customers to spread the costs amongst. This grant funding would go a long way toward
making this project a near -term reality without impacting individual household budgets.
I hope you will agree and select Mason PUD 1's project to move forward for appropriations. They have been an innovative
and collaborative community partner and have a proven track record of getting projects done for the public they serve.
ur, istrict No. 2
Phone (360) 385-9100 Fax (360) 385-9382 jeffbocc@co.jefferson.wa.us