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more than expected. We also completed a series of audits <br />in North St. Paul. <br />4P Program. Last session saw considerable discussion <br />out potential changes in the CIP program. The co -ops <br />pursued a bill to roll back some of the requirements, but <br />offered no data to support the proposal, which was strongly <br />opposed by environmental groups and the state regulatory <br />authority, the Division of Energy Resources (DER). MMUA <br />testified in multiple Senate and House committee hearings <br />regarding our concerns about the program and potential <br />changes. MMUA has continued to work with DER about po- <br />tential modifications to the program. <br />Department of Energy Resources. The relationship we have <br />developed with DER was evident by the appreciation we re- <br />ceived from Commissioner Grant in legislative hearings and <br />at the Winter Meeting when he thanked MMUA for our ef- <br />forts in working with his office. MMUA and DER have kept <br />up the relationship with MMUA serving on DER's Advisory <br />Board reviewing Low Income /Multiple Resident conserva- <br />tion programs and a separate engineering review of the <br />Deemed Savings Database for generic energy conservation <br />efforts. MMUA is also working with DER on the changes to <br />the CIP reporting procedures to ensure we can use the soft- <br />ware. We were also included in the review of the distribut- <br />ed generation law in the fall and are paying close attention <br />• any possible changes to the law from that process. <br />EPA Rulings. We provided research and analysis to APPA on <br />all of the proposed EPA rulings during the year, including: <br />power plant water intake and discharge, RICE, coal ash han- <br />dling, ozone, two different boiler particulate rulings, green- <br />house gas, and mercury. MMUA drafted the APPA resolution <br />on the Electric Generating Unit Maximum Available Control <br />Technology EPA ruling that was submitted and approved by <br />APPA at the national meeting in June. <br />Smart Grid Grant. Efforts to forge relationships with others <br />helped promote MMUA as a research and development or- <br />ganization leading the way into the future of energy manage- <br />ment. A yearlong effort resulted in MMUA being awarded a <br />grant in December from the DER to develop and evaluate <br />subsets of the universal "Smart Grid" in four MMUA mem- <br />ber communities. These projects will be ongoing into 2014. <br />Work With Members and Potential Partners. Many meet- <br />ings were spent analyzing and developing partnerships and <br />programsfor municipal utilities to advance energy conserva- <br />tion, renewable energy, distribution system, and generation <br />a -1 sects. We also met with financial organizations to assist <br />ities and their customer businesses find the resources to <br />develop projects. We worked with and /or visited a number <br />of member utilities to provide advice and technical support. <br />MMUA's Bruce Westergaard, left, discussed an upcoming <br />element of the 2011 Underground School with Sauk Cen- <br />tre's John Egan. <br />Safety and Training <br />Over the past sixteen years, MMUA's safety and training <br />program has evolved under the leadership of Safety and <br />Training Director Mike Willetts from modest beginnings <br />into a comprehensive and highly respected program that is <br />viewed as a national leader among municipal organizations. <br />Safety Management Program. MMUA's Safety Manage- <br />ment Program offers a consistent and comprehensive <br />safety program for all city departments. The program em- <br />Two students trained under the watchful eye of an instructor <br />at the 2011 Underground School. <br />2011 Year in Review - 9 <br />