Setting the record straight

Barbara Day recently criticized me, Lyle McKnight, for speaking out about La Plata Electric Association’s lack of transparency – suggesting I am a “hypocrite” because I serve on the Durango Fire Protection District (DFPD) board. Let’s set the record straight.

First, DFPD board members serve without pay. They volunteer their time to oversee the fire district – not manage its day-to-day operations or conduct staff evaluations. Decisions like pay raises for the fire chief are made by the board as a whole and based on public budget processes. In fact, the fire chief’s salary – about $187,000 annually – is publicly available, and board votes on it are recorded in open meetings. Entry-level firefighters, by comparison, received a 5% raise – also publicly documented.

By contrast, LPEA’s CEO makes over $500,000 a year with undisclosed bonuses and benefits. When I and others asked for transparency in executive compensation and the Mercuria power deal, we were stonewalled. That’s not oversight – that’s a blackout.

Furthermore, concerns about DFPD’s salary transparency were raised by a single former employee in a letter to the editor, not in any formal complaint or audit. LPEA’s issues, however, are systemic: secretive contracts; unaudited claims of savings; and record-high rate hikes.

I am stepping up, because ratepayers deserve better. I am running to restore transparency, accountability and public trust at LPEA, where it’s currently lacking.

– Lyle McKnight, District 4 LPEA Candidate