- Tuesday, September 25th @ 6pm: City of Yelm Public Hearing
The City of Yelm has scheduled a public hearing to receive public comment on Proposition 1, the Thurston Public Power Initiative. The hearing will take place on Tuesday, September 25, 2012 at the Public Safety Building, 206 McKenzie Ave SE at 6:00 pm as part of the regularly scheduled Yelm City Council meeting. Proposition 1 will be on Thurston County ballots November 6th and states, 'Shall Public Utility District No.1 of Thurston County construct or acquire electric facilities for the generation, transmission or distribution of electric power?'
Click here for Yelm's Public Hearing info, posted on MastersConnection2020.


- Thursday, September 27th @ 7pm: Forum in Olympia
Olympia, WA—This Thursday, September 27, the League of Women Voters, Thurston County Progressive Network, and The Olympian are sponsoring a community forum—Public Power: Yes or No on Proposition 1—starting at 7 p.m. at The Washington Center for the Performing Arts in Olympia.

Thurston County Proposition 1 qualified for the November ballot when a group called Thurston Public Power Initiative collected sufficient signatures from Thurston County registered voters as required by RCW 54.08.070. Proposition 1 asks for a “Yes” or a “No” to the question, “ ;Shall Thurston County Public Utility District 1 construct or acquire facilities for the generation, transmission, or distribution of electric power.” The RCW also provides that if the Proposition receives a majority vote, “… the district shall be authorized to construct or acquire electric facilities.”

The current provider of electricity in Thurston County is Puget Sound Energy (PSE), a privately-held corporation owned by the Australian investment bank, Macquarie, and with local offices in Bellevue. Both Puget Sound Energy and Thurston PUD have completed preliminary studies of the feasibility of an electrified PUD and, as would be expected, they differ greatly in scope and results. This Forum is an opportunity for both sides and their supporters to both be heard and hear from the people of Thurston County.

The highlight of Thursday’s Forum promises to be the Question and Answer period during which attendees will be able to ask questions of the four speakers—Thurston County PUD Commissioner Jim Lazar, Puget Sound Energy Vice President , Corporate Affairs Andy Wappler, Thurston Public Power Initiative Chair John Pearce, and Alliance to Protect Thurston Power Co-Chair Ralph Munro. Grays Harbor Public Utility District Commissioner Tom Casey will also be present to answer questions about PUDs that already provide electricity for their customers.
Read more from the web site.