Thanks TVA

[puddle jumper]

Man with this being christmass, and work cutting back on my Hrs and money being generially tight. I was glad to see that Dec, was a little warmer,. I figured that at least mother nature was going to cut us a break, little lower power bill this month right ????

Well wrong, I got my bill and it was a clear 25% higher than it was last month "remember the really cold month Nov.", I figured it had to be a mistake so I gave them a call, there answer to me was,,, they had a price hike to cover the cost of the spill...

Not only is the fishing going to suffer, but we get to pay to clean up the mess as well...
So if you havent gotten your bill, be warned,,,

Sorry,, just a small rant,,emoSorry

Seems like every time a big company has a problem we get to pay for it in one way or another... emoBang

Puddle
emoEnforce

 

[cb1340]

puddle, i feel your pain, our bill was above average also. And last year we had to shell out roughly 4000 bigones for a new heat/air unit. Although it was a big chunk of money, it has actually saved us money. And another few things that you could do, make sure there isn't any leaks around windows doors etc., keep things you don't have to have plugged in unplugged like the coffee pot, tv, pc, NOT the fridge(LOL!!) anyway doing these small things have helped me keep from paying up to 60 dollars a month extra(my wife sat down and ran the figures, our biggest saving was 57 and some odd change) but seriously these little things add up at the end of the year. We also have those silly compact flouro light bulbs. Just trying to help a fellow fisherman out Your 100% right everytime the big dogs run out of food they're gonna eat ours

 

[fish4thepeck]

I would like to thank TVA for feeding my family over the years, for keeping our Power cheaper than any in the Nation, for providing me a place to fish and take my family, for helping our schools, for helping our communities, for providing jobs for thousands, for providing scholarships, and on and on.
TVA had a very unfortunate accident and must and will be accountable for it. I wish someone could tell me and make me understand what our alternative should be for keeping electricity running to our homes. Is it Nuclear ( three mile Island ), Combustion turbines, ( numerous explosions) Solar ( who is going to pay for it ). While I continue to work and breathe and wade in this arsenic laden flyash which me and thousands have done for years I hope I get an answer.

 

[cb1340]

fish4peck I also have to agree with you TVA provided my family as well as my mother and father BOTH worked at Sequoyah Nuclear Plant and watts bar, bellefonte, browns ferry. And really I don't know an alternative for electricity for our home in this area. I grew up in the " nuclear family" and it is deep rooted in my brain; I don't want to make anyone mad or offend anyone or whatever, I'm just stating thats its possible to cut your bills in half.

 

[fish4thepeck]

I agree with you.

 

[finbully]

puddle jumper - 12/31/2008 9:08 PM


Man with this being christmass, and work cutting back on my Hrs and money being generially tight. I was glad to see that Dec, was a little warmer,. I figured that at least mother nature was going to cut us a break, little lower power bill this month right ????

Well wrong, I got my bill and it was a clear 25% higher than it was last month "remember the really cold month Nov.", I figured it had to be a mistake so I gave them a call, there answer to me was,,, they had a price hike to cover the cost of the spill...

Not only is the fishing going to suffer, but we get to pay to clean up the mess as well...
So if you havent gotten your bill, be warned,,,

Sorry,, just a small rant,,emoSorry

Seems like every time a big company has a problem we get to pay for it in one way or another... emoBang

Puddle emoEnforce

Nov. on average was 2.6 degrees cooler than normal - pretty significant from a climatology standpoint.

The price hike part answer you say you received is absolutely untrue. The price hike was a total of 20% effective Oct. 1, a 3% increase in the base rate which covers the cost of working capital, costs related to fuel inventory that are not covered in the Fuel Cost Adjustment, the cost of reserving power for future purchase to get better prices, and investments in TVA’s work to reduce the rate of growth in the region’s power demand. One area of cost that is not going up is TVA’s non-fuel operating and maintenance costs, which include labor and administrative costs.

The remaining 17% increase is the Fuel Cost Adjustment (FCA) and is a pass-through cost due to the rising cost of fuel. TVA’s FCA is a quarterly adjustment mechanism also used in most parts of the country to recover the costs utilities must pay for fuel and purchased power, so there is a better match between revenues and the actual expenses for fuel. Price increases for fuel, including coal, natural gas, and purchased power are driving TVA’s costs up by more than $2 billion in FY 2009, compared to FY 2008. Our drought is a significant contributor to costs, as water is basically a free fuel and when we don't have that, it needs to be replaced with coal, natural gas and market priced power to serve the electric load.

Let's hope the recent rains continue, diminishing the effects of a three-year severe drought to get us in better shape from a hydro generation (and recreational) standpoint

The good news is that beginning today, there is a 6% decrease in the FCA, because fuel prices have dropped.

It is incumbent on all of us to use energy wisely to hold down the cost of our utility bills and reduce the need for expensive peaking generation and market power purchases.

 

[jon the fisherman]

Thanks TVA for poisening my water for so called cheaper electricity.

 

[Jmax]

I am sorry but I struggle with this one. It really upsets me that after the most recent increase that TVA had they laid off several more people, have told others they may be next to go but then the board of TVA votes in this huge pay increase that was in the "Millions!" for the CEO, Tom Kilcore. Just another story of greed, if they are having problems to the degree they claim to be then could someone please explain a pay increase in the millions for the CEO???? emoAngry emoScratch Jmax

 

[finbully]

Jmax - 1/2/2009 5:54 AM

I am sorry but I struggle with this one. It really upsets me that after the most recent increase that TVA had they laid off several more people, have told others they may be next to go but then the board of TVA votes in this huge pay increase that was in the "Millions!" for the CEO, Tom Kilcore. Just another story of greed, if they are having problems to the degree they claim to be then could someone please explain a pay increase in the millions for the CEO???? emoAngry emoScratch Jmax

I know this will not ease the pain of hearing more about the CEO pay world --- but I made some quick checks on what CEO’s are paid at some regional utility companies. This is 2007 total compensation information from publicly available financial statements:

American Electric Power Company, Inc. - Michael G. Morris - $19,659,476
Dominion Resources, Inc. - Thomas F. Farrell II - $15,118,207
Southern Company - David M. Ratcliffe - $10,957,921
Duke Energy Corporation - James E. Rogers - $9,914,319
Progress Energy, Inc. - William D. Johnson - $7,744,448
Ameren Corporation - Gary L. Rainwater - $4,709,439
TVA - Tom D. Kilgore - $1,988,667

Even with Mr. Kilgore’s potential $500,000 increase (his base pay raise was $200,000) making a total potential of $3.27 million for FY 2009, you can see he is at the bottom of the regional utility CEO stack. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not defending the high levels of pay for CEO’s.

The serious environmental event that started this thread is horrible for us sportsmen and women, and all other affected persons. I am deeply saddened by the ash pond failure and I empathize with people who are struggling financially but compensation is a competitive environment and Mr. Kilgore could find a job making more money - if money was his only focus.

 

[Fishin Fool]

Jmax - 1/2/2009 8:54 AM

I am sorry but I struggle with this one. It really upsets me that after the most recent increase that TVA had they laid off several more people, have told others they may be next to go but then the board of TVA votes in this huge pay increase that was in the "Millions!" for the CEO, Tom Kilcore. Just another story of greed, if they are having problems to the degree they claim to be then could someone please explain a pay increase in the millions for the CEO???? emoAngry emoScratch Jmax

I am with you Jmax. According to statements from TVA they have a high CEO/manager pay to attract and keep the best in the industry. I think that CEOs, CFOs, Corporate Officers, Managers and so on, in any industry, need to be paid a wage that is not somewhere in outer space! This country has gotten away from fair pay for work. Even total failures in the business community are strapped with gold parachutes. I think that sports figures are WAY over paid too. In the old days a person working at a manufacturing plant could make $20,000 per year, and the company CEO would make 100,000. Look at it now. Most of the top tier make roughly 400 times what the highest paid average worker makes. We have become a nation of greedy "me" oriented people. As long as it is ok for "me" who cares what anyone else makes or that I am destroying the company I work for. It's all about "me" now.

TVA has done a ton of good things for this valley. Flood control, electrical production, lakes, recreation. They have also acted with arrogance and disregard for the public on many, many occasions. So in my eyes it is a mixed bag of both blessings and blunders. Hopefully they can get this mess cleaned up. I honestly don't think they REALLY know the long term effects. They are doing what the government (yeah I know, they aren't government owned! Kinda like the Postal Service!) always does, which is cover their a**.

 

[Jmax]

I do not believe that number you show on Kilgore has the bonus I was talking about. It was in the millions, I do not remember the exact number. I did not mean to lead you astray. It was not a regular pay increase but a bonus increase for 2008 that was voted in right after that last % increase that took place a couple months back on our utiility rates. I think all this CEO pay structure is for the birds. The poor keep getting poorer, the middle class is shrinking, the lower class is growing and the upper class just keeps getting richer and justifies it by pointing at another upper class bozo making more then them. emoBang

Do you actually believe that any one person on that list is worth that much money just to work there? emoMad That is a joke, think of how many people you could hire at a reasonable rate, give them fair labor jobs and still get the same job done if not better. Sorry but there is no way someone would ever convince me otherwise. This is the kind of garbage that has us in the shape we are now in our economy. emoCrazy

As far as that spill is concerned there was just a 167 million dollar lawsuit filed for that happening by land owners and others effected. Does this mean we are in for another rate hike and Kilgore is in for another raise. emoHoppingmad Jmax

 

[Guest]

All these companies including TVA that jacked prices in late summer/early fall because of high fuel costs. Totally understandable. Fuel is now less than half the price that it was in the summer so why have the prices not come back down? Inquiring minds want to know.

 

[finbully]

cheez - 1/2/2009 7:50 PM

All these companies including TVA that jacked prices in late summer/early fall because of high fuel costs. Totally understandable. Fuel is now less than half the price that it was in the summer so why have the prices not come back down? Inquiring minds want to know.

See:

http://www.tva.gov/news/releases/octdec08/11-08_fca.htm

Basically, natural gas prices have dropped but coal has not. Also, even with the recent rains TVA is still low on water storage. I'm crossing my fingers that the drought is on it's way outta here!

 

[finbully]

Jmax - 1/2/2009 7:47 PM

I do not believe that number you show on Kilgore has the bonus I was talking about. It was in the millions, I do not remember the exact number. I did not mean to lead you astray. It was not a regular pay increase but a bonus increase for 2008 that was voted in right after that last % increase that took place a couple months back on our utiility rates. I think all this CEO pay structure is for the birds. The poor keep getting poorer, the middle class is shrinking, the lower class is growing and the upper class just keeps getting richer and justifies it by pointing at another upper class bozo making more then them. emoBang

Do you actually believe that any one person on that list is worth that much money just to work there? emoMad That is a joke, think of how many people you could hire at a reasonable rate, give them fair labor jobs and still get the same job done if not better. Sorry but there is no way someone would ever convince me otherwise. This is the kind of garbage that has us in the shape we are now in our economy. emoCrazy

As far as that spill is concerned there was just a 167 million dollar lawsuit filed for that happening by land owners and others effected. Does this mean we are in for another rate hike and Kilgore is in for another raise. emoHoppingmad Jmax

See:

http://www.knoxnews.com/news/2008/oct/31/a-nice-raise-for-ceo-of-tva/

 

[Fishin Fool]

Jmax - 1/2/2009 10:47 PM

I do not believe that number you show on Kilgore has the bonus I was talking about. It was in the millions, I do not remember the exact number. I did not mean to lead you astray. It was not a regular pay increase but a bonus increase for 2008 that was voted in right after that last % increase that took place a couple months back on our utiility rates. I think all this CEO pay structure is for the birds. The poor keep getting poorer, the middle class is shrinking, the lower class is growing and the upper class just keeps getting richer and justifies it by pointing at another upper class bozo making more then them. emoBang

Do you actually believe that any one person on that list is worth that much money just to work there? emoMad That is a joke, think of how many people you could hire at a reasonable rate, give them fair labor jobs and still get the same job done if not better. Sorry but there is no way someone would ever convince me otherwise. This is the kind of garbage that has us in the shape we are now in our economy. emoCrazy

As far as that spill is concerned there was just a 167 million dollar lawsuit filed for that happening by land owners and others effected. Does this mean we are in for another rate hike and Kilgore is in for another raise. emoHoppingmad Jmax

Dang Jim! You are on the money again! "do you actually believe any one person on that list is worth that much money just to work there". Truer words have never been spoken! I can't imagine opening my pay envelope and having a check in it for JUST $67,000.00 before taxes every week can you? I mean working 9 to 5 for that kind of cash is giving my work away! Maybe one good thing will come out of this mess we are in; perhaps people at the top, in public companies, will come into a little more bit more of a realistic realm concerning their pay.

 

[Guest]

In my opinion there is no incenitive in a CEO or any top job to get that kind of pay, If he just makes one year and gets run off on a friday he won't have to be beating the bushes come monday to get another job, he has it made for life if he takes care of the millions he made in one year. Making that kind of money doesn't give him any incenitive to do a great job for the company, the company doesn't get it's money's worth. If the head honcho just made say 100 thousand a year he would be trying to do the best job he could so that he would get rewarded at the end of the year. There is just so many things in life that you can buy and enjoy and I don't remember seeing any of them giving away part of their millions.Maybe they just want to look good at the country club or the elite club that they belong to.

 

[Jmax]

yep, that was the numbers I saw. I guess it was not sinking in how high he was already. 2.7 million to 3.27 million. emoDoh Would you not love to get a raise of $850,000 in just one year. Truely that is rediculous. Compound that with how they keep saying they are hurting right now, letting some go, and well..... I guess I have said enough. Nothing we say on here will make one bit of difference to anyone but for some reason I feel better. emoGoofy Jmax

Got to get off of here and head for the lake. Me and Paul J are giving a donation to someone on the Chick today in the TN Team Tour tournament. emoBigsmile

 

[beetlespin]

Is this the Soviet fishing forum now? Where do you guys get off trying to decide how much money people make? I will admit that some of these salaries seem crazy but its not for us to decide. Until you have walked a mile in one of these top managers shoes you don't know what they go through or what they are worth. What if the average guy runs a billion $ business and his profit is $2 million or an super guy runs the same business and is profit is $200 million? That's a 2% return compared to a 20% return and both are reasonable numbers. Now you are the CEO of that company and you look and say wow this guy made us an additional $198 million over that average guy. So you decide to give the guy 10% of that $198 million you earned that you wouldn't have earned otherwise. That means you give him a bonus of $19.8 million but even with that you made $178 million that you wouldn't have. This is just a hypothetical example but a good leader can do this. Even if a company loses $100 million in a year it may have been much worse under different leadership.

If the market was regulated by the government to the point that top managers could only make $100k a year we wouldn't need colleges anymore and we would quickly become un competitive with other countries. We would all be poor and drunk like the Russians. Be careful what you ask for.

 

[team-d]

Yes, this is the USA last I remember, and people are allowed to make as much money as they possibly can. If someone offers me a 20-30% raise I'm sure as hell not turning it down. If I've paid my dues, made the right moves, and put aside my hobbies, family, and pretty much everything else in my life to run a company and make a ton of money then I'm not going to apologize for it and offer to take a pay cut.

I liken this to people complaining about Wal-Mart, the biggest, richest, etc company in the world - how can you fault them for being the best in the world, isn't that what business is all about? Should they start intentionally losing money so other companies can benefit?

 

[Fishin Fool]

team-d - 1/3/2009 2:08 PM

Yes, this is the USA last I remember, and people are allowed to make as much money as they possibly can. If someone offers me a 20-30% raise I'm sure as hell not turning it down. If I've paid my dues, made the right moves, and put aside my hobbies, family, and pretty much everything else in my life to run a company and make a ton of money then I'm not going to apologize for it and offer to take a pay cut.

I liken this to people complaining about Wal-Mart, the biggest, richest, etc company in the world - how can you fault them for being the best in the world, isn't that what business is all about? Should they start intentionally losing money so other companies can benefit?

No Wal-Mart should continue to import more Chinese products than any one industry in the United States and make workers here lose their jobs, not to mention increasing the price of energy and running smaller American retailers out of business while they pay Chinese workers pennies per hour. All the while, the family sits on assets of around 10 billion dollars. Try doing a little research about Walmart. They are one of the reasons we are going to become a second rate, debtor country in the next few decades. Look at our trade deficit with China. Not only do we have a trade deficit but soon they'll own ALL of our debt. Walmart is helping that process along. I buy from they from time to time because honestly they have about destroyed any chance of American competition. What American can live on 50 cents per hour? Sam Walton would roll over in his grave if he knew what these robber barons were doing with his company. Ask the average Walmart worker that works their ass off for $9 an hour after being with the company for 15 years if they think the family makes a little too much and pays the bandit CEOs a little too much. I know some of those folks. While the Walton family builds a multimillion dollar "end of times" shelter and compound their workers are the largest majority of people on government insurance in most states. Guess who picks up that tab? Exxon made the largest profit of ANY corporation in history last year, but somehow, just somehow, we ended up paying the highest prices for gas as the same time. Did their CEO take a pay cut to help with energy costs?????? What about AIG? I could go on and on with examples.

If you got a 100% raise I doubt you'd make one percent of what most CEO's of publicly traded companies make in a year. If you think these people are putting aside their family or their hobbies, or their trips and luxuries then you are sadly mistaken. The fastest way to get rich in America now is when Mommie and Daddy leaves it to you. Check it out in Forbes.

I totally agree with the idea of one person starting a company, making it successful on their own (not using investor or public funds) and reaping the rewards. Get as rich as you like. But I won't buy the argument that folks at places like Goldman Sachs, American Express, ATT, General Motors and on and on and on are actually anything CLOSE to being worth what they are being paid. Jmax is right; the gap between what a worker makes and what a top CEO makes keeps getting bigger and bigger. We can debate a free market economy all we like. We don't have one anymore. If we did, CEOs would make money more in line with what they are worth, rather than what the market can strain to pay based on a good ole boy network and who you know. Average pay for a teacher is about $42,000 per year, same with police and fire fighters. ONE of those people teaching your child, getting you out of a burning house, or stopping someone from robbing and killing you is a heck of lot more important than some fat cat sitting on his butt milking a dying company for cash. The President of the United States makes $400,000! Talk about a job that takes you away from things! I noticed that someone mentioned the Soviet Union. Moscow nows has more billionaires than any city in the world, while average people live on about $15,000 per year. Good example for us to follow and follow it we are. China is moving in fast on this record also. We have 415 Billionaires in this country and China has over 100. But hey, paying those poor hard working Russians and Chinese a fair wage while their people starve, go homeless, and die is great isn't it? Russian and China have traded one form of evil for another. Sadly, a lot people don't stop and look around until it is too late and they have lost their jobs, homes and incomes right here in the USA. If you think these fat cat CEOs are out to help YOU then you are sadly, sadly, sadly mistaken. They care about one thing: their bank balance.