Hastings Utility Board Regular Meeting - April 9, 2026

The Hastings Utility Board met on April 9, 2026 at 9:00 AM in the Airport Conference Room at Hastings Municipal Airport. The meeting covered operational and administrative items: budget scheduling, a steam turbine overhaul during the WEC spring outage, updates on field data capabilities, and a sewer billing error affecting approximately 870 customers. Citizen comments addressed Next Generation Nuclear.

Consent Calendar

• Approval of the minutes of the March 12, 2026 Utility Board meeting. (Moved by Kvols, seconded by Rutt, passed unanimously.)

Public Comments & Testimony

• Willis Hunt (616 Madden Road) asked about progress on Next Generation Nuclear, noting prior meetings and his involvement with the advanced nuclear coalition. He expressed support for the city pursuing a small nuclear plant. Utility leadership responded that Hastings is among four communities under consideration; if selected, development is likely more than 10 years away. Studies by Nebraska Public Power District and a state application for the nuclear lifecycle innovation campus are in progress. The manager expressed support for exploring nuclear but noted concerns about operation, waste, and cost.

Discussion Items

• Manager's Communications: The manager reported that all information for Solar Phase II has been submitted and that the utility is exploring Solar Phase III. He also noted rising gas generation costs and capacity value, which create a unique opportunity to vet generation options (to be brought to the board soon), and discussed pending state legislation affecting bidding for Hastings and PPGA. He introduced Jeanne Espina as the new process financial analyst.
• Board Chairman's Communications: The chairman thanked for information on the American Public Power Association conference in Boston (end of July/June) and encouraged board members to attend.
• Finance – Budget Schedule: Jaci Higgins presented the tentative budget schedule. The July board meeting will be moved to July 23 for the first budget presentation. A water and sewer cost of service study is underway, with a preliminary report expected within the next month; consultants are evaluating tiered rates.
• Production – WEC Spring Outage / Steam Turbine Overhaul: Micah McCaffery detailed the spring outage at Whelan Energy Center. WEC 1 (March 20 – May 1) includes a 7-year steam turbine overhaul, valve overhaul, and bottom ash recirculating system installation. WEC 2 (April 24 – May 8) includes precipitator repairs and pump maintenance. The turbine overhaul process (disassembly, inspection, repair, reassembly, testing) was explained with photos from the current outage. The rotor weighs approximately 20 tons and spins at 3,600 RPM. Overhaul costs are approximately $800,000–$1 million and take about six weeks.
• Operations – Live Data in the Field: Noel Nienhueser reported on equipping field crews with tablets for outage management. New functionality adds a non-control SCADA view (Web Serve) for real-time system awareness, and tankless system mapping using AMI outage data for faster restoration.
• Administration – Sewer Billing Error/Correction: Shane Stone reported a software issue affecting approximately 870 customers enrolled in seasonal sewer exempt billing rates (mostly commercial, some residential apartments and trailer courts). The underbilling occurred from the July 2025 billing cycle through January 2026, with an average impact of about $522. Approximately 65% of affected customers have balances under $100. The correction will appear on bills starting April 13, with notification letters, emails, and phone calls for large balances. Tyler Technologies will conduct an on-site system review starting mid-April, and the utility is training staff internally to improve auditing. The board discussed the impact on customers and the vendor's responsibility; Tyler has acknowledged higher-than-expected issues.

Key Outcomes

• Motion to adopt the agenda (Meeske/Dewalt) carried unanimously.
• Motion to approve the March 12, 2026 minutes (Kvols/Rutt) carried unanimously.
• July board meeting rescheduled to July 23, 2026 for the first budget presentation.
• Customer notification and correction billing for the sewer error begins April 13, 2026.
• Tyler Technologies will send an on-site team to review the billing system starting mid-April 2026.
• No closed session was held; the meeting adjourned at 10:07 AM (motion by Dewalt/Meeske, unanimous).