Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Infrastructure topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Lincoln County to send letter supporting Lincoln Electric Co-op’s congressional funding request to underground key power line
Summary
County commissioners agreed to draft and send a letter of support to congressional and Senate offices backing Lincoln Electric Co-op’s request for federal funding to finish construction of a roughly $7 million project that would bury about 14 miles of overhead line to improve reliability and reduce wildfire risk.
Lincoln County commissioners voted on April 23 to draft a letter of support for Lincoln Electric Co-op as it seeks federal funding to complete the construction phase of a project to convert nearly 14 miles of overhead power line to underground.
Jacob, communications manager for Lincoln Electric (speaker 5), told the board the co-op had received a BRIC-related award that funded design and procurement (phase 1, about $300,000) but that the construction phase (phase 2) was paused at the national level. Jacob said phase 2 construction was estimated at roughly $6 million of the project’s total $7 million estimated cost and that the co-op was pursuing congressional direct funding and other opportunities to cover that gap.
Another presenter (speaker 6) described the line as a double circuit that serves a major commercial customer (a rail tunnel and related track services) and traverses large stands of forest, increasing the wildfire risk associated with overhead lines. Commissioners asked questions about the scope of the work and whether the county’s letter should be directed to both House and Senate offices; the board agreed a multi-office outreach was appropriate and recorded a motion to draft the letter. The commission approved drafting and sending the letter by voice vote and asked staff to include supporting attachments such as maps and a letter of recommendation from BNSF in the packet.
Commissioners and the co-op noted uncertainty in federal grant programs but said supporting the co-op’s outreach keeps the project visible to potential champions in Congress.
The board directed staff to draft the letter and to distribute copies to commissioners and the co-op for their records; the co-op expects submission materials by May 2.
