WSB TRANSPARENCY
When I ran for the Windham School Board (WSB), I promised transparency. Sometimes, that puts me in an uncomfortable situation when I disagree with fellow Board Members. Such is the case now, as I provide my insights regarding what I feel was a rushed 3-1-1 decision (Rekart/Joanis/Senibaldi – yes, Eyring – no, Breton – abstain) to sign a no-bid, $577K contract with Cenergistic, a “behavior-based” energy conservation company during the 1/6/15 WSB meeting.
The allure to sign the contract was Cenergistic’s estimate that the Windham School District (WSD) would save $1.8M over 10 years with “no equipment changes required” if the district followed their customized energy conservation program.
I was skeptical. As a School Board Member who has attended many of the Citizen’s Facilities Committee (CFC) meetings over the past 7 months, I knew from speaking with Tom Murray (Windham Contractor), Jerry Rufo (Facilities Manager for IBM), and Rich Amari (Construction Management), that the proposed plans for addressing our space needs incorporate many energy saving measures (for all our schools) that align with PSNH programs.
So prior to the meeting, I reached out to PSNH and spoke directly with our area’s Account Executive regarding programs that would provide the WSD with free energy audits and substantial equipment rebates that could immediately lead to double digit energy savings. I asked Mr. Murray from the CFC to join me on the call – to ensure our district was expertly represented.
I brought this information with me to the WSB meeting. I expressed confidence that Windham already had the expertise to accomplish the savings. I shared my phone conversation regarding the free audit and financial incentive programs that are provided by PSNH, and I questioned why we would sign an agreement with Cenergistic.
I suggested we seek competitive bids from other companies. I made my fellow Board Members aware that the Derry School District rejected Cinergistic’s proposal, and suggested we put off our decision for two weeks – to provide enough time for us to perform our due diligence, and thereby make a more informed decision. I also requested several times that Windham residents be allowed to share their views with the Board. The three expert members of the CFC mentioned above were present and wanted to speak, but were denied permission by Chairman Rekart.
To my dismay, a majority of the Board voted to move forward even though we don’t have a clear definition of the services that will be provided – nor IMO, a valid justification for the enormous cost. And there is no guarantee the projected savings will be realized.
I was so troubled by the process, that I took an unpaid day off from work the following day to do some more research. Here is some of what was found:
Cenergistic changed their name two years ago from Energy Education, Inc. (EEI).
The Massachusetts Inspector General wrote this “Advisory for the Procurement of Energy Management/Conservation Services” for Massachusetts School Board Officials:
That advisory refers to EEI and includes the following:
“Before paying a vendor hundreds of thousands of dollars, this Office strongly recommends that school districts determine if some energy savings can be achieved through other forms of education or energy conservation measures.”
“Although EEI claims that its program is unique, energy conservation and management service options exist in abundance”.
“This Office recommends that awarding authorities not execute contracts until they fully understand the basis of the service fee being charged and should be able to tie the fee to a measurable product deliverable.”
“Awarding authorities should be very clear on the following points:”
- “The ten year projection used to market and sell the program is not guaranteed and the district is contractually obligated to pay EEI’s fee regardless of whether the district ever achieves the projected savings.”
- “EEI guarantees only that savings will exceed costs, not that savings will equal EEI’s projected savings.”
- “EEI’s guarantee applies only if EEI is satisfied that the energy manager devotes enough time and effort to the program and that the district ‘substantially implements’ the program.”
“In order to receive EEI’s guarantee, EEI clients are required to purchase software, to measure energy savings.“
“EEI has a business relationship with the software provider which should be disclosed to clients prior to the signing of a contract. The founder and owner of EEI, established a company, American Energy Intelligence, for the sole purpose of purchasing the software from Enron Corporation, and assigned the rights to Good Steward, LLC. … Reports from this software are used to identify school district cost savings and are the means by which EEI tracks its savings guarantee.”
I believe the above information that was found in a short period of time raises questions that should be answered. I’d appreciate hearing your thoughts.
Respectfully,
Ken Eyring
Windham School Board Member
keyring@windhamsd.org
