Get Help with Federal Funding

Did you know that the federal government will invest trillions of dollars in infrastructure over the next five years?

And that billions of dollars of those new investments are available to support public power?

Did you know that ElectriCities has partnered with Strategics Consulting to keep our members informed about the latest grants and funding during this unique time?

If you haven’t yet met Leslie Mozingo, CEO of Strategics Consulting, at an ElectriCities event, or if you weren’t able to catch the federal grants webinar back in April, you may not know about these important opportunities and services available to your community.

Over the last two years, the federal government passed legislation that increases investment in public infrastructure to the highest levels we’ve seen in decades. The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (also known as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL)) and the Inflation Reduction Act create opportunities for local governments and public power communities to pursue clean energy, resiliency, and modernization projects.

One opportunity the BIL created is the Department of Energy’s Grid Resilience and Innovation Partnerships (GRIP) program, which provides $10.5 billion to fund smart grid, grid resilience, and grid innovation grants.

In partnership with ElectriCities, the team at Strategics Consulting is available to help ElectriCities members identify and pursue federal funding. They provide regular alerts on federal grant funding opportunities, consult with you to review grants and program information, advise on the competitiveness of specific grants, and more.

Strategics doesn’t write grant applications but can recommend a pool of grant writers for you to consider.

Find resources from Strategics Consulting, including weekly grants alerts and a full scope of Strategics’ services for ElectriCities members, on the Federal Infrastructure Grant Resources page of our website.

For more information about our federal grants advisory services or to schedule a consultation, contact Carl Rees, ElectriCities Manager of Economic and Community Development.

Prepping for Winter Load Management

Whether your community’s load management programs use switches, generators, or both, now’s the time to start planning for the winter chill. The details may differ for each community, but the goal is the same: Reduce your wholesale power costs by decreasing the demand on your electric system when demand is highest.

Hop over to our website to learn more about what the move from warmer to cooler temperatures means for your community’s load management and to get tips from the ElectriCities team on how your utility and your customers can prepare now.

Pro Tip: Check Your Switches

Are Your Community’s Contacts Correct?

We’ll be sending off the 2023 ElectriCities Membership Directory to get printed before we know it. That means now’s the time to ensure your community’s info and contacts are accurate and up to date.

Doing so requires just a few minutes in the nifty ElectriCities Member Portal we launched last fall.

For a five-minute refresher on how to update your organization’s directory information, check out this short video overview.

Or, for detailed instructions on how to make your updates, refer to the ElectriCities Member Portal Membership Directory Update Guide.

If you have questions or need help, contact Jenny Johanns, ElectriCities Senior Executive Assistant – Chief Officers.

There’s Still Time to Give Your Opinion

Have you given your feedback in the 2022 ElectriCities Member Survey yet?

If you’ve already taken the 10-15 minutes to complete the survey and let us know how we’re doing and what we can do to better serve you, thank you!

If not, please do. Your feedback is truly invaluable.

Input from past survey participants has impacted the training we offer, shaped the content in our Annual Conference and Connections Summit, revealed opportunities for us to collaborate to collectively address challenges, and much more.

In case you’ve missed it, the survey was emailed by GreatBlue Research (Surveys@greatblueresearch.com). Look for recent reminder emails with the subject line “Reminder: ElectriCities of North Carolina wants your feedback!”

Please complete your survey today! If you have questions, or if you’d like to complete a survey and haven’t received one, please contact Gregg Welch.

Celebrating Public Power

We can’t let October end without a Weekly Wire shoutout for Public Power Week!

You all made it a great week of celebrating public power, the value it brings to our communities, and the amazing folks who work hard to keep the lights on all year long.

You highlighted our frontline heroes in so many fun and inspiring ways, including breakfasts and lunches for utility workers, trivia contests, heartfelt employee features, community events, and lots of great giveaways.

For highlights from your public power neighbors around the region and across the country, search for #PublicPowerWeek or #2022PPW on your favorite social media channels.

And thank you all for all you do to make public power in our region successful and to share the value of public power with your communities. Let the celebration continue all year long!