Today we offer an update from Paul, a report on the PRC ruling to remove Marcus Rael from the PNM/Avangrid merger case, and the info you need to make written and/or oral comment on the proposed merger at the PRC hearing on Aug. 9 at 9 a.m.

First, we urge you to offer public comment at the Mon., Aug. 9 PRC hearing on the PNM/Avangrid proposed merger. You must register to give public comment no later than Mon. Aug. 9 at 8:30 a.m. Written comment must be submitted by Weds., morning, Aug. 11. We need as many people as possible to present oral and/or written comment to stop this merger from being approved! You’ll find the info you need about the merger and how to register to comment at this link.

Now, from Paul: I’m so happy to be home and getting in-home physical, speech, and occupational therapy. Some of you commented that you were surprised that UNM Hospital didn’t have discharge planning support that would have referred us to Ambercare without our having to get that info from friends at KSFR. In defense of UNM, a good part of my career was spent researching and designing care coordination and integrated healthcare systems for public health and hospital systems. There will always be weak links in these systems as:

• insurance coverage is ever changing and can vary depending on a wide array of variables; and
• available slots in programs can change in an instant.

A care coordination system requires resources to maintain accurate info on insurance coverage and slot availability. In a Medicare For All system, hospitals would be better able to flexibly allocate resources to more easily keep this kind of info current, making the discharge planners job much easier and the patient’s experience more seamless. The last thing I’d want you to take away from our reporting is any dissatisfaction with UNM’s or Christus St. Vincent’s services, as we have been 100% happy with the emergency response, treatment, and rehab support we have received. Kudos to both.

I keep surprising our docs and therapists with my progress, even as I keep waiting for progress in my muddled thinking and abysmal typing. You should be very grateful for Roxanne’s painstaking editorial work, repairing my rough and tumble writing that always comes with generous servings of typos and ALL CAPS passages.

I also want to thank the scores of you who have sent emails or made comments on the blog with words of support and advice. I wish I could reply to them all, but to write just these first few paragraphs has taken me well over an hour!!! It is very slow going, but it is also a form of occupational therapy, though not very fun.

I especially want to thank a team of folks who offered to take me to and from appointments. Very kind, but now that we have in-home therapy, we have far fewer appointments. And we actually look forward to them, as we turn them into a fun outings. On Monday we had a CT scan in Rio Rancho, and afterward we headed to Turtle Mountain Brewery and I had a green chile cheeseburger, a huge pile of amazing onion rings, and an IPA. Clearly, the stroke has not diminished my appetite. The scale wishes it had.

I must say, I am really appreciating all the things we take for granted!!! Given all the synapses that must fire correctly and be recognized by other synapses just to take a step or a breath, it is a miracle we can navigate a sidewalk, tie our shoes, or craft a sentence. And yet we do these things without thought. Until you have stroke…

In many ways our brains/bodies are a microcosm of Nature, operating within a tight system of interdependence. Until a stroke upsets that balance and everything goes haywire or, in Nature, mankind begins extracting more, producing more, and wasting more than is sustainable within that delicate balance. But I digress…

In closing, I continue to improve in all areas except writing. And so once the PNM/Avangrid merger is decided, I’ll be taking some time off from blogging and focus on rest and recovery. And that is my segue to the Avangrid update below.

PRC Backs NEE, Rules to Remove Marcus Rael from Merger Case

In a stunning rebuke, the PRC rejected Avangrid’s and the Attorney General’s arguments and found NEE’s claims of conflict of interest compelling. As a result, the PRC has removed Avangrid’s local attorney Marcus Rael from the case. Read about the issue in our July 17 blog at this link. Of course, this comes more than a tad late, as Rael already did what Avangrid paid him to do: use his personal influence to sway Attorney General Balderas and persuade him to change his position on the merger. Mission accomplished, wrist slapped. Nonetheless, this joins other findings and PRC rulings that suggest that they are not amused by Avangrid’s methods or their proposed merger.

NEE has shown, under an objective standard, that a concurrent conflict of interest exists for Mr. Rael in this proceeding under Rule 16-107(A). NEE has shown that Mr. Rael’s representation of Iberdrola (on behalf of Avangrid) in this case is directly adverse in this proceeding to the interests of the Attorney General (and the public the Attorney General represents) and to the interests of Bernalillo County. The Attorney General’s initial position in this case recommended denial of the merger and acquisition transactions proposed by the Joint Applicants for the Commission’s approval. The Attorney General’s position changed during the course of the proceedings when it signed on to the Stipulation in this case. Bernalillo County’s initial position recommended denial of the transactions proposed by the Joint Applicants, and, although Bernalillo County has apparently agreed to certain compromises in its pre-filed rebuttal testimony, its position is still adverse to Iberdrola and its other Joint Applicants.

That’s it for today. We’ve spent the last few days creating a webpage with video and analyses of the proposed PNM/Avangrid merger, along with lots of compelling info to help you craft effective oral and written comment at Monday’s PRC hearing. Click here to reach that page. You must register to give public comment no later than Mon. Aug. 9 at 8:30 a.m. Written comment must be submitted by Weds., morning, Aug. 11. Please take some time over the next two days to prepare your public comment. We need your participation! We can take nothing for granted.

Time to rest and rehab… Adios.

In solidarity, hope, and so much gratitude,

Paul & Roxanne

Categories: Environmental Justice

Tags: Avangrid, Featured, PNM, PRC, public utility, read more