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Elk River <br />Municipal Utilities UTILITIES COMMISSION MEETING <br />TO: <br />FROM: <br />ERMU Commission <br />Tony Mauren — Governance & Communications Manager <br />MEETING DATE: <br />AGENDA ITEM NUMBER: <br />December 12, 2023 <br />6.1d <br />SUBJECT: <br />Staff Update <br />ACTION REQUESTED: <br />None <br />DISCUSSION: <br />• The December bill insert going to all customers is the winter edition of our newsletter, <br />The Current. It provides information on the Advanced Metering Infrastructure project, <br />bill payment services through SmartHub, how to avoid scams, ERMU's Smart Energy <br />Provider designation, tree trimming, and the Recycle Coach app. As mentioned at the <br />November meeting, the sidebar on the front page now features information about <br />ERMU's rebates and QR code to make accessing them easy. <br />• In addition to highlighting the bill insert topics, social media posts this month feature a <br />variety of items including the commission meeting notice, water conservation rebates, <br />introducing new employees, as well as holiday closures and garbage delays. ERMU is <br />also partnering with the City to promote its Holiday Lights Tour. We shared the City's <br />Facebook post on November 20 and had additional posts on November 29 and <br />December 6. ERMU is also utilizing its social media channels to promote the City's Adopt <br />a Hydrant program. <br />The Governance & Communications Manager attended Minnesota Municipal Utilities <br />Association's Government Relations virtual meeting held on November 28. The group <br />reviewed the expected asks for the 2024 session including: exempting data centers from <br />Renewable Energy Standard calculations, passing a sufficient bonding bill for projects in <br />need of financial assistance — with particular focus on water and wastewater facilities, <br />preventing municipal water systems from needing to raise rates to manage PFAS levels, <br />and repealing a ban on siting and use of nuclear power facilities in Minnesota. <br />• In May 2023 it was reported that three staff members (communications coordinator, <br />IT/OT technician, and GIS/mapping technician) were enrolling in a Drone Pilot Ground <br />School to be able to utilize drones in capturing more engaging and descriptive visuals as <br />well as performing quick and safe equipment inspections. I am happy to report that <br />Communications & Administrative Coordinator Jenny Foss successfully passed the <br />Page Iof2 <br />182 <br />