Though the winner won’t be known until after the general election, five candidates to serve as a Lewis County Public Utility District (PUD) commissioner will face off in the August primary Tuesday with the top two advancing to the general election.
Jilona Speer, Dave Fenn, Angie Brown, Jerry Lord and Julie Balmelli-Powe have filed with the Secretary of State to run for a six-year term on the commission. During filing week, incumbent Ed Rothlin told The Chronicle he would not seek a new term.
Rothlin represents District 2, which spans much of western Lewis County and the City of Chehalis.
Ahead of the August primary, The Chronicle sat down with the five candidates to hear about their decision to run, and what they hoped to accomplish if elected.
The primary on Aug. 6 will decide which two candidates advance to the general election. The Lewis County Auditor’s Office has mailed 54,982 ballots to registered voters.
If a voter doesn’t receive their ballot, the auditor’s office recommends visiting votewa.gov and selecting “my ballot,” calling 360-740-1278 or visiting 351 NW North St., Chehalis. If a registered voter has moved, they can update their registration with either of the options.
Lewis County offers ballot boxes in all nine of its incorporated cities — Chehalis, Centralia, Morton, Mossyrock, Napavine, Pe Ell, Toledo, Vader and Winlock — as well as in the unincorporated areas of Mineral, Onalaska and Packwood.
Ballot boxes are open 24 hours a day beginning 20 days before each election. They close promptly at 8 p.m. on election day.
Jilona Speer
A member of the Pe Ell Town Council, Speer said she has been driven to public service for more than two decades. According to the Lewis County voter’s pamphlet, Speer holds a bachelor's degree in social science and cultural anthropology.
“I really enjoy serving the people,” Speer said. “It’s just always been something that’s been close to my heart.”
If elected, Speer said she would try to “think outside of the box” in search of affordable and suppliable energy sources, and vowed to keep rates affordable.
Speer cited the Green New Deal and The Energy Independence Act (otherwise known as Initiative 937) as challenges, as a switch to renewable energy could prove either ineffective or costly to ratepayers.
“Like a lot of families, we lived paycheck to paycheck,” Speer said. “It’s not just survival, we want the community to thrive.”
Speer said she would like the PUD to establish a power bank, which she said would help reduce the likelihood of either brownouts or blackouts during peak usage. Speer said she would also like the PUD to establish a “consumer Bill of Rights.”
The Bill of Rights, she said, would focus on the PUD’s status as a public utility and a commitment to add to the district’s infrastructure.
Speer, who has served on the Pe Ell Town Council since 2021, said the role has given her a better understanding of Washington law and how governments operate.
“I’ve learned a lot sitting at the town council table,” Speer said.
Dave Fenn
A Boistfort High School graduate, Fenn said he has nearly five decades of experience as a farmer, which includes partial ownership of the farm store in Chehalis.
“I like to think the ups and downs of farming prepare you,” Fenn said.
According to the Lewis County voter’s pamphlet, Fenn holds a degree in education with a math major from Pacific Lutheran University and taught high school math for seven years before turning to Lewis County.
While he said he “didn’t go looking for this job,” Fenn said he was encouraged by several Lewis County residents.
“Once I decided to do that, I wanted to get elected and do a good job for the people of Lewis County,” Fenn said.
In an interview, Fenn said he had received the endorsement of the three current PUD commissioners. According to Fenn, the Pacific Northwest is currently dealing with a shortage of power, something the commissioners will have to address in the coming years.
To accomplish this, “We don’t want to close down any opportunities to maximize any supply of power,” Fenn said.
Longterm, Fenn said the commissioners will also have to work to renew a contract with the Bonneville Power Administration.
While maintaining PUD rates is important, Fenn said the mission of the PUD goes further.
“It’s not just low rates, it’s reliable service, too,” Fenn said.
Angie Brown
With a background in real estate and operating nonprofit organizations, Brown said her experiences have helped her develop a pulse on the needs of Lewis County.
“It was just kind of the right time in my life to take the next step,” Brown said. “I feel like I have a huge connection to the whole county.”
According to the Lewis County voter’s pamphlet, Brown graduated from Pe Ell High School and Centralia College and served as the United Way of Lewis County Board President and Secretary.
If elected, Brown has vowed to ensure the PUD “operates efficiently and effectively” while maintaining low rates for residents. To do so, Brown said the PUD must invest in utility infrastructure to maintain system reliability, and safety and reduce outages.
The PUD, she said, also must budget for an expansion in the county’s population to ensure adequate service.
“Growth is there, it’s going to happen,” Brown said.
According to Brown, the pillars of her campaign include responsible budgeting, customer service and maintaining affordable rates for residents. Brown said she always wanted to champion broadband for rural communities in the county.
Following an 18-year career in banking, Brown said she is prepared to help manage the PUD’s budget.
“I have experience with the budget, and overseeing that protocol is being followed,” Brown said.
Overall, Brown said the main goal of her campaign is to help Lewis County grow and be successful.
“I just want to give back,” Brown said.
Jerry Lord
A former Chehalis City Council member, Lord cited his work on the budget committee and his experience as the owner and operator of the Market Street Pub and the M&K Town Store.
According to the Lewis County voter’s pamphlet, Lord served four years of active duty in the Marine Corps and over three years in reserves while he attended Washington State University.
In an interview with The Chronicle, Lord said he viewed both the PUD and city council as a “public service, rather than a political type of thing.”
In preparation for the election, Lord said he has frequently attended PUD meetings and researched PUD-related concerns.
Part of his concern, Lord said, is the service contract the PUD enters into with residents, which he claimed authorized the PUD to terminate a resident’s power if they don’t disclose when a new resident moves into an address.
According to Lord, he was told that the issue does not lie with who occupies a residence, but rather a concern that residents could mine for Bitcoin or participate in other activities that require high power usage.
“This contract with item two has been out there,” Lord said. “They complain about the smart meters, but they’re not complaining about the actual authority these guys have to turn your power off because grandma moved in with you. It seems silly.”
The PUD, he said, also has set an efficiency goal of saving 187,000 megawatts of energy a year, which is equal to about 6% of the PUD’s total usage.
“There is no real plan to do that,” Lord said. “But it’s there, that’s the goal.”
Julie Balmelli-Powe
In an interview, Balmelli-Powe said she was motivated to run in part by the PUD’s decision to install 30,000 advanced meters throughout the county.
“I didn’t think it had to be an all-or-nothing type decision,” Balmelli-Powe said.
According to the Lewis County voter’s pamphlet, Balmelli-Powe is a graduate of W.F West and attended Centralia College and Washington State University, where she received a bachelor’s degree.
While she said she loves the PUD, Balmelli-Powe said she grew frustrated by a series of town halls and forums the PUD held as it worked to install the technology. The rollout, she said, was a “surprise” to many, and she became frustrated with a lack of communication from the PUD.
“This was just one place where I thought ‘Boy, things have changed,’” she said.
According to Balmelli-Powe, she has opted out of the meter refresh program.
While the rollout of the program is expected to be completed later this year, Balmelli-Powe said she would work to “get a compromise for anyone who doesn’t want one.”
Balmelli-Powe said doesn’t want to be “negative and fight everything” if elected to the board, and said she would work to avoid rate increases for residents.
In an interview, Balmelli-Powe noted that she was self-funding her campaign, and was not accepting donations, which she said helps her speak more freely about important issues.
“I want to keep the perspective that I represent the people,” Balmelli-Powe said. “I’m running solely for the people.”
