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CONTACT US FOR YOUR FREE ESTIMATE TODAY! w w w . o a kv ill eb ea ve r.c o m O A KV IL LE B EA V ER Th ur sd ay , N ov em be r 2 5, 2 01 0 1 2 In the letter, Bystrin wanted to alert council to what he felt were serious short- comings in the governance structure and practices of OHCs board of directors. In the letter, Bystrin stated that if the issues were not soon resolved they would negatively impact the corporations reputa- tion and ability to perform its functions. The issues he pointed out were as fol- lows: Highly inappropriate behaviour by some board members. Inability or unwillingness of the Board Chair to stop the above. Excessive board and committee meet- ings and director compensation structure. So far this year (to Oct. 13 (2009)) the OHC boards and committees have held 52 meet- ings (with seven more scheduled), at the cost of $212,180. By way of comparison, in 2003, OHC had 22 meetings at the cost of $125, 487. The number of meetings and size of the two OHC boards are much greater than the industry norm. Given OHCs lean manage- ment structure (total of 32 management personnel), the volume of meetings and management time spent on them, is seri- ously impairing our ability to perform duties necessary for the proper functioning of the organization. The letter also mentioned that Bystrin failed to resolve the issues by working directly with the board and decided to address town council. The Town of Oakville is the major shareholder of Oakville Hydro. Despite the comments in the letter, the chair of the Oakville Hydro board, Gary Burkett, does not believe there was inappro- priate behaviour by its members. He could not directly respond to the letter due to the non-disclosure agreement. However, when asked if he has seen what he might consider inappropriate behaviour around the board, Burkett said, Absolutely not. He said the board was expanded in June 2008 because Oakville Hydro is the Towns most important asset. We really went out there and had some 140 applicants. We panel interviewed some 30 odd and weve landed an incredibly talent- ed board, he said. He added the board was able to sell Blink Communications to Rogers for $130 million, something that was a $1 million investment. We think, through the board, which is extremely capable, we are able to maximize and leverage the investment. Quite frankly, the dividends from Oakville Hydro repre- sents four per cent of (the towns) revenues, he said. When asked about the letters allegation of his inability or unwillingness to stop the inappropriate behaviour of the board, he responded saying Town Council reappointed the board and its chair in June of this year. As to whether board members are receiv- ing excessive compensation for attending board and committee meetings, Burkett said a 2006 independent study revealed OHC direc- tors receive less than the industry median. The average median director, when you include the per meeting fee, and you adjust from 2006 to 2010 for inflation, the average board fee was $15,563. I can tell you that were now in month 11 of this year, and we expect that for all of Oakville Hydro, the average board compensation of the board and stipend of the meeting fees will come in under that, he said. He admitted the 18 board directors on the OHC is higher than the industry norm. It might be slightly higher, he said. Ive seen numbers that are definitely 18. Ive seen some that are in the 13s. It might be in the higher end of the range, but I think its still within the range. As a comparison, neighbouring Burlington Hydro board has eight directors, while Mississaugas Enersource has 10 directors. Despite several attempts with representa- tives of both the Town and Oakville Hydro, the Beaver was unable to obtain information on how much the board and committee meetings have cost so far this year. When asked if the issues mentioned in the letter were resolved or even needed to be resolved, Burton said, I can tell you that in June of 2010 council reappointed the board. When contacted by the Beaver, Bystrin said he was bound by the non-disclosure agreement and could not comment. He did not indicate whether he met with council. When asked if he believes the problems he indicated in the letter are still ongoing, Bystrin said hes no longer connected with Oakville Hydro and therefore would not be able to answer the question truthfully. Rob Lister replaced Bystrin in April in the capacity of CEO and president. Lister said he could not directly comment on the letter. When asked how many OHC board and committee meetings took place to date this year, Lister said there had been about six regular board meetings. There are also four committees and each of them meets once for every time there is a board meeting. Lister said four to five directors sit on each committee. The directors include Mayor Rob Burton, Ward 6 Town Councillor Max Khan and the Towns CAO Ray Green, who receive no compensation for sitting on the Oakville Hydro board. According to the Towns documents, the chair of the board receives $14,200 each year and the chairs of the committees receive $8,200. The directors each receive $6,500 annually. In addition to that, the directors receive $300 for each meeting they attend. Hydro chair says no inappropriate behaviour by board members Continued from page 1 November 30th BURLINGTON Robert Bateman High School, 5151 New Street, Burlington December 2nd ACTON Acton District High School, 21 Cedar Road, Acton January 25th BURLINGTON Polish Hall, 2316 Fairview St, Burlington January 26th GEORGETOWN Georgetown District High School, 70 Guelph Street, Georgetown January 27th OAKVILLE Galaxy 707 Hall, 475 North Service Road E., Oakville PARENTS AND STUDENTS: The Halton District School Board invites you to nd out about the opportunities and specialized programs available for your children in high school. Information Evenings 6:30pm to 8:30pm Go to www.hdsb.ca/pathways or www.schooltocareer.ca for more information