Hull Light Plant Board Adopts Voluntary Payment Policy in Unanimous Vote

HULL -- November 20, 2025, Hull Municipal Light Plant Board unanimously adopts voluntary payment policy effective January 1, 2026. The five-member board voted 5-0 Thursday to approve a nine-point policy governing annual pilot payments to the town of Hull, pending review by board attorney Nick Scoville before the rescheduled December 9 meeting. Interim Operations Manager Jennifer Kingston presented two payment formulas, one formula-based that would have yielded $227,643 based on 2024 kilowatt hour sales, and one flat $200,000 annual payment, while board member Jake Valancourt pushed back on any fixed formula, citing a $633,000 decline in the light plant's operating cash in 2024 even as the DPU chart of accounts showed an unappropriated earned surplus of $14,170,580. The board also voted unanimously to direct Kingston to explore a grid-scale battery project with MWEC, investigate funding the depreciation account at 3 percent, and present the FY2026 budget at the December 9 meeting, where a solar rate policy proposal is also expected.