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Applicants tout TMPA experience and cautious stewardship for Garland ratepayers
Summary
Two candidates for Garland's Texas Municipal Power Agency seat highlighted utility experience and concerns about transmission costs and transparency. Tom Hancock emphasized Garland's large ownership stake in TMPA; Julius Shinkens focused on public engagement and budget uncertainties.
Tom Hancock, deputy general manager of Garland Power and Light, told the City Council he brings 16 years with the utility and long experience with TMPA issues, including transmission system investments and rate‑of‑return considerations. "Garland being 47% owners of that, obviously, we're very involved," Hancock said, arguing the city must protect the investments its ratepayers have made and plan for the possibility that transmission assets could be split among member cities.
Julius Shinkens, a municipal attorney for the city of Dallas and a Garland resident, told council he is applying "to be of service and to learn everything that I possibly can about what it means to be a resident of the city of Garland." Shinkens said he worries about unanticipated costs tied to transmission line maintenance in recent TMPA budget statements and urged council to maintain open lines of public communication as TMPA changes its operations.
Neither candidate was appointed at the work session; the council will make the appointment during its regular meeting the next day. Council members asked both applicants questions about how they would balance Garland's local interests with regional obligations; both emphasized prudence, experience and attention to ratepayer value.
