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7th Director Election - Mr. Burleson Responds

Mr. Burleson,

Thank you for your response to our proposal.

Please reconsider supporting retiree voting for the 7th director before the window on this opportunity closes. Four months have passed since we first informed you of our proposal and asked for your support. Time is now running short. If we let this opportunity pass, retirees will never again get another opportunity like it. The retiree 7th director’s next term begins November 1, 2018. Ideally, the board should begin planning for the election at this Thursday’s TVARS Board meeting in order for a retiree elected 7th director to be in place at that time.

Since we informed you of our proposed accountability improvement plan in November, we have received positive feedback from several TVARA officers and many TVA retirees. We recently attended a TVARA event where support was strongly expressed for our plan, especially retiree voting for the 7th director. It is very clear to us that retirees want the opportunity to elect the retiree director. An open, transparent election process in which all retirees are eligible to vote would help to ensure that retirees have a retiree director who will vote in their best interests and who will listen and be responsive to their phone calls and emails.

Some in the TVARA may think they can negotiate directly with TVA and get even more directors on the board who truly represent retirees. This is a false hope. TVA is only willing to discuss this now because of the pressure we have brought in asking for the 7th director to be elected by retirees. TVA has historically always attempted to increase its control over the TVARS Board whenever proposing structural changes. Wisely, past retiree TVARS Board members did not agree to those TVA proposals. TVA does not want a TVARS Board with a majority subject to fair and free elections over which they have no control.

Sincerely,

Sam DeLay, TVARS Board Director
Jim Hovious, TVARS Board Director
Leonard Muzyn, TVARS Board Director


From: B DeWitt Burleson [mailto:bdewitt@tds.net]
Sent: Tuesday, March 20, 2018 1:59 PM
To: Leonard Muzyn <tvarsmuzyn@gmail.com>
Cc: abcjax@eplus.net; Jean Bryson <sjbryson@tva.gov>; ldoverly@hotmail.com; mcbee liz <mcbee_liz@comcast.net>; redearma@comcast.net; Reny McClain-Lee <renymlee@comcast.net>; Richard T. Wilson Jr <rtwilson@tva.gov>; rjwhitson@tva.gov; Suzan E. Bowman <suzanbowman@gmail.com>; Tica Hayes <ticahayes@gmail.com>
Subject: Re: 7th Director Election

The TVARA is always interested in proposed or approved actions of the TVARS Board.  We may have comments on governance at a later date.



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