Cost of Service & Rate Design: Two-Part Series

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Timing

Attend real-time Zoom sessions from Noon – 3:30 pm ET for each course. There will be two 10-minute breaks each live session.

Unable to make the live sessions? Recordings will be made available (automatically to those who register) within a week after each live session.

Delivery Method/Learning Environment

This course is a Group Internet based offering (via Zoom) and combines real-time presentation, polling questions, real-world examples, Q&A and group discussion.

Series Overview

Learn all about cost of service—from basic concepts to leveraging data for decision making—and get up-to-speed on the best practices in utility rate design. Find out how to determine revenue requirements and key financial targets and relate them to cost of service. Get real-life examples on how to improve your utility’s long-term financial health. Review rate trends and strategies from utilities across the nation and hear how others are integrating distributed energy resources and restructuring rates.

This series of two, in-depth virtual courses, provides foundational training for utility personnel and an opportunity to earn CPE credits for attending live sessions!

Basic Cost of Service & Key Financial Targets (Sep. 17 & 18)
Strategic Rate Design: Trends and Distributed Generation Impacts (Sep. 24 & 25)

All events will be recorded and attendees will automatically receive access to the recordings (accessible for 90 days).

Who Should Attend?

Courses in the Cost of Service & Rates Series are designed for general managers, finance and accounting personnel, rate analysts, financial planners, as well as policymakers.

Course Level/Prerequisites/Advance Preparation

Course levels range from basic to intermediate. There are no prerequisites, and no advance preparation is required. A basic working knowledge of the fundamentals of electric utility finance is helpful, as these courses reference industry terms and dive into high-level trends and strategies.

Technology Requirements

Zoom Meeting Application: Attendees are required to have strong Internet access, in order to run the Zoom meeting platform.
Audio/Webcam: You will need to enable computer audio to listen and speak (alternatively a call-in number will be provided) and we recommend a webcam, so you can fully engage in the group discussions.
Additional details on the Zoom platform can be found under the “More Information” tab.

Accreditation

The following continuing education credits will be provided for this Group Internet based event, after successfully completing 90% of each two-part live course. Review the guidelines for successful completion in the “Accreditation” dropdown below.

Recommended CEUs .6/PDHs 5.5/CPEs 6.2 (total for each two-part course)
Field of Study: Specialized Knowledge

Instructors

Mark Beauchamp, CPA, CMA, MBA, is the President of Utility Financial Solutions. He has over 35 years of experience in electric utility consulting and management. In his previous positions, Beauchamp has assisted with improvements to accounting and operation practices, risk assessments, cost of service, and competitive rate designs. He is a frequent speaker at national and regional conferences and has taught a variety of courses for the Association. He holds degrees in water purification technology and accounting, as well as a master’s degree in business.

Chris Lund, Financial Consultant with Utility Financial Solutions, has been a full-time member of the UFS team since 2011, and part-time technology consultant since 2003, brings over 30 years of experience in financial, technology and management consulting to our team. Using tools and knowledge gained through experience and his bachelor’s degree in Business Administration with a concentration in Computer Science and Speech Communications, Chris specializes in studies for electric (with specialization in distributed generation), water, wastewater, and telecommunications utilities.

Dawn Lund is the Vice President of Utility Financial Solutions, a consulting practice that specializes in financial planning, cost of service, and rate-setting for public power utilities. Dawn has over 25 years of experience in financial analysis for utility systems. She specializes in providing financial assessments, cost of service studies and financial plans for utilities throughout the country, Canada, Guam and the Caribbean. She teaches a variety of financial planning courses and regularly speaks at conference and industry events for APPA and other organizations across the nation.

Jillian Jurczyk, Rates Manager with Utility Financial Solutions, brings over ten years of
direct experience to UFS clients, with expertise in cost of service studies, rate designs,
long-term financial projections, and econometric modeling. She utilizes her Master of Science in Applied Economics degree from Johns Hopkins University to lead the econometric modeling service offering at UFS. Additionally, she worked with UFS leadership to assist in building out the firm’s solid waste consulting services. Jill obtained her Bachelor of Mathematics degree from Grand Valley State University.

About Utility Financial Solutions
Utility Financial Solutions specializes in electric, water, wastewater, telecommunications and gas cost of service studies, unbundling studies, competitive rate designs, financial projections and special financial analysis. They are one of the largest providers of financial services to utilities across the United States. Their team includes engineers, accountants and economists that have completed hundreds of cost of service studies, rate studies, and financial projections for utilities in 39 states, Canada, Guam, and the British Grand Cayman Island. They also teach a variety of in-depth courses and speak at industry events across the country. Learn more about Utility Financial Solutions.

Questions?

Registration/Billing: Registration@PublicPower.org
Schedule/Content/Accreditation: EducationInfo@PublicPower.org

Registration

Register now!

Registration Fees

Registration is for individual access. If you have multiple people interested in attending, group discounts are available.

	Members*
Bundled Series - includes both courses (Save $200)	$995
Individual Courses
Basic Cost of Service & Key Financial Targets – Sep. 17 & 18	$595
Strategic Rate Design: Trends and Distributed Generation Impacts – Sep. 24 & 25	$595
*Non-member rates are double the member rates.

Group Discounts

Save money when your organization registers five or more people for the same class or the bundled series. The larger your group, the more you save!

Registrations must be submitted on the same order (at the same time) to qualify for the group discount; discounts cannot be retroactively applied to previous orders.

If you need assistance, contact Registration@PublicPower.org.

Number of registrants	Individual Courses	Bundled Courses
1-4	n/a	n/a
5-9	$50	$100
10-14	$100	$200
15-24	$150	$300
25+	$200	$400

Registration Help

Check out our Registration FAQs for answers to the most common questions and help with all your registration-related issues.

Cancellations/No-Show/Refunds/Substitutions

All events will be recorded and attendees will automatically receive a copy of the recordings, in case you can’t attend live.

Registrants who cancel in writing at least seven days before the first day of a course are entitled to a refund of their registration fee, minus a $100 cancellation fee. Registrants who cancel after that will not receive a refund, but attendee substitutions will be allowed for this event only. Registrants and no-shows who do not cancel at least seven days before the course start date are responsible for the full registration fee and are not entitled to a refund.

Cancellation deadlines:

Public Power Forward Series (both courses) — Cancellations must be received on/before September 10
- Basic Cost of Service & Key Financial Targets — Cancellations must be received on/before September 10
- Strategic Rate Design: Trends and Distributed Generation Impacts — Cancellations must be received on/before September 17

Cancellation requests should be made through your My.PublicPower portal, or addressed to: Registration@PublicPower.org.

Questions?

Registration/Billing: Registration@PublicPower.org
Schedule/Content/Accreditation: EducationInfo@PublicPower.org

Accreditation

Earn While You Learn!

Participate in virtual programs to earn Continuing Education Units (CEUs), Professional Development Hours (PDHs) and Continuing Professional Education credits (CPEs).

What Educational Credits Are Available?

You can earn the following kinds of continuing education credits for attending live sessions — provided the following requirements are met.

Requirements for Successful Completion: Virtual

Registration is for individual access, so each person participating must register. If you have multiple people interested in attending, group discounts are available.
Individuals are required to attend and actively participate in 90% of each live session and complete an online evaluation after the last session in a course.
- Attendance: Individuals must attend at least 90% of each live session (based on electronic timestamps in Zoom).
- Participation: Active participation in class will include engagement activities such as: polling/check-in questions, Q&A, and group discussions.
- Activities vary by class: Information on participation will be provided the day before (and during) class. Participation is tracked electronically.
- Online evaluation: Each person must complete an online evaluation after each course concludes.
Partial credit cannot be given for partial attendance.
Attendance is monitored by an APPA staff member during the event, through an online report log, and upon review of the post-event evaluation data
Completion certificates will be available within two weeks of the last session in a live event (for those who meet the requirements) through your APPA member portal (access instructions will be provided).
Virtual sessions are recorded (attendees automatically receive access to recordings within a week of the last session), though continuing education credits can only be given for attending live events. Recordings will be accessible for 90 days after the last session.

Guidelines for group participation in virtual events

If a group is participating in a conference room together, we recommend each person still logs in individually from a laptop to ensure attendance and participation requirements are met (as noted above).
If individual log in is not possible, the organization must designate one person as the main point of contact. Email EducationInfo@PublicPower.org in advance of the virtual event noting this information
- This person will record attendance in the room in the room (we can provide a sample attendance tracker) and ensure attendance and participation from the group throughout.
- Submit the attendance record to APPA within 2 business days of the conclusion of a virtual event.
- Ensure each person fills out the required online evaluation

What educational credits are available?

You can earn the following kinds of continuing education credits for attending live sessions—provided the following requirements are met:

Continuing Education Units (CEUs): The American Public Power Association is accredited by the International Association for Continuing Education and Training (IACET) and is authorized to issue the IACET CEU. For information regarding certification status, attendance requirements and obtaining attendee transcripts, contact EducationInfo@PublicPower.org. Verify our IACET Accreditation.

Professional Development Hours (PDHs): The American Public Power Association’s educational practices are consistent with the criteria for awarding Professional Development Hours (PDHs) as established by the National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying (NCEES). Course eligibility and number of PDHs may vary by state.

Questions?

Registration/Billing: Registration@PublicPower.org
Schedule/Content/Accreditation: EducationInfo@PublicPower.org

Additional Information

Format and Log-In Information

These classes will be offered on the Zoom meeting platform.

Communication

24 hours after registering: You’ll receive a confirmation email within 24 hours of registering, which contains some preliminary information.
24 hours before the event:
- You’ll receive your Zoom log in link the day before the first session in a course (sent from the APPA Academy’s Zoom account <no-reply@zoom.us>)
- You’ll also receive a final logistics email 24 hours in advance of the first class.
  - If you don’t receive this, email EducationInfo@PublicPower.org.

Course Access and Materials

Zoom Links: Zoom log in credentials will be sent out 24 hours before the start of the first session in a class.
Course Materials: Attendees will receive access to course materials the day before each session through the "Documents" section of their My.PublicPower.org user portal.
Recordings: All sessions will be recorded and can be accessed through your user portal as well (within a week of the last class in the program), in case you can’t attend the live versions. Recordings will be accessible for 90 days after the last session. Note: Continuing education credits can only be issued for attending live sessions.

Technology Requirements

Zoom Meeting Application: Attendees are required to have strong Internet access, in order to run the Zoom meeting platform.
Audio/Webcam: You will need to enable computer audio to listen and speak (alternatively a call-in number will be provided) and you will also need a webcam, so you can fully engage in the small group breakout sessions and group discussions.

New to Zoom?

If you haven't participated in a Zoom meeting before, please download the Zoom web client from the Zoom Download Center. This will enable you to access all of the Zoom tools and functionality vs. using the web version. Then, visit Zoom.us/test to ensure you are able to join a meeting.

If you are not able to download the Zoom web client, you can still participate via your Internet browser. We recommend using Chrome for the best results.

Privacy and Security

The American Public Power Association takes your privacy and security very seriously. For this reason, we have put the following security measures in place for this course: