NASHVILLE, Tenn.—The business meeting is truly the heart of the NRECA Annual Meeting, and this year more than 100 proposed resolutions were adopted. Five are new resolutions, not previously addressed in the 2017 member resolutions booklet.

Among the resolutions voted on by approximately 620 voting delegates at the Feb. 27 meeting was one urging NRECA to oppose proposals to breach dams in cases that could impact reliability or "economic and environmental benefits" of hydropower systems.

As explained in the background information included with the resolution, such dam breaches "could add millions of dollars to a region's power bills. The breadth and scope of the impacts are staggering," the resolution states. It was adopted on a 605-8 vote. With delegates using new electronic voting devices, vote counts were immediately reported.

An existing resolution, reaffirmed during the meeting, calls on the association to be actively engaged in ensuring that any government action on greenhouse gas emissions "protects the interests of, and minimizes the economic impacts to" electric co-ops and their members.

Broadband is the subject of a new resolution, which urges NRECA to take a "prominent leadership and advocacy role" in Washington to ensure co-ops have the ability to provide broadband to their members. The background information, which is provided to help educate delegates on the issues addressed in the resolution, explains that "without broadband, our communities cannot survive."

Among the other resolutions adopted:

• A resolution urging NRECA to support the continuation and funding of Department of Agriculture Rural Development programs;

• A resolution calling on NRECA to promote the benefits of end-use electrification;

• A resolution to honor the service provided by electric co-op workers "as they provide critical support" to other first responders in emergencies;

• A resolution to create a new preamble for the member resolutions booklet that would include the Seven Cooperative Principles.