CEO’s Message – April 2025

BPA Job Cuts: Truth & Consequences

The Bonneville Power Administration is mentioned here quite often for various reasons. BPA has been in the news more than usual lately because of the Federal government’s workforce reduction efforts currently impacting nearly every Federal agency in the country. Not surprisingly, the workforce reductions at BPA will impact Columbia REA as well.

BPA owns and operates 75% of the high-voltage electrical transmission system in the Pacific Northwest, which provides about 32% of electricity in the region, but that figure is much higher, just north of 80%, for Columbia REA. BPA is also a self-funded agency, which means all revenues are generated from ratepayers who receive electricity from the 152 utilities across 7 western states that purchase electricity from BPA, not from state or local taxes.

While exact numbers are not available, most reports indicate that BPA lost upwards of 400 employees, with no deference to position, experience, or performance. Many of the “probationary” (newer) hires have been rehired, but many of the remaining 300-plus jobs were held by lineworkers and dispatch personnel. These are the people in the field and the people directing what happens in the field, including those who actually, literally, control the flow of electricity, from generation at the 31 hydroelectric dams controlled by BPA, to transmission through the 15,000 miles of line and 261 substations controlled by BPA. These are highly specialized positions that were inhabited by highly trained individuals doing very delicate work. And with the hiring freeze in place on top of the workforce reduction orders, those positions will remain either unfilled or filled with internal personnel new to the position.

Summer is right around the corner, and fire season will soon be upon us. The possibility of fewer experienced hands available to prep for fire season, provide real-time monitoring, and implement safety measures in high-risk conditions or active fire situations is very real, and could lead to more extensive and more costly damage from fires. And with fewer BPA lineworkers to aid in rebuilding damaged lines, outages—fire-related or not—will be longer.

Already, a significant percentage of the outages you experience as a member of Columbia REA originate in the transmission lines owned by BPA. As a customer of BPA, Columbia REA has no control over these outages. If these cuts in BPA’s workforce hinder its ability to respond, it will impact all of us directly with longer outage restoration times.

And then there is safety. As a longtime partner, we know that BPA holds the safety of people and property, right at the top of their list of priorities, just like we do. A comprehensive, effective safety program requires checks and double-checks, training and retraining, redundancy and repetition. These job cuts will not alter BPA’s commitment to safety, but whether they impact BPA’s ability to maintain its safety practices at the same high level is a question I’d rather not have to consider.

Best,
Scott Peters, CEO