GLASGOW – The Glasgow City Council voted Monday to deliver a letter detailing several complaints about the Glasgow Electric Plant Board to the utility’s board of directors’ legal counsel that could lead to a public hearing to remove the board’s members from office if they are unwilling to compromise on issues.

Among issues raised in the letter is the use of $2.4 million raised from electrical sales to pay for expenses related to providing cable and broadband, which is prohibited by state law, in the opinion of Danny Basil, the Glasgow attorney representing the city council.

“According to the Little TVA Act, which we function under, proceeds from electrical sales can only be used for rate reductions and can’t be used for broadband or cable or other activities,” he said.

The letter asks the EPB to pay the $2.4 million back to its own Electrical Division through “a loan or bond or some other arrangement and get this money restored to the Electrical Division so that it can be used for rate reductions according to law.”

The letter also cites as issues the customer charge of $22 a month – roughly double what it was before a controversial new electric rate was introduced in January 2016 – as well as EPB Superintendent Billy Ray’s use of email to let board members know what he plans to discuss at board meetings. According to the letter, Basil believes Ray’s use of email in regard to agendas for the board’s monthly meetings might violate the state’s open records laws.

“I believe the consideration of that material by the Board results in votes and actions taken with little or no public discussion,” the letter stated.

Ray has never refused or failed to provide the Daily News with an emailed copy of a board meeting’s agenda upon request.

The letter could potentially lead to a legal hearing in which EPB directors Norma Redford, Jeff Harned and Cheryl Ambach defend themselves before the city council.

“If you authorize me to send this letter I will contact Mr. (John David) Cole (the EPB board’s legal counsel) and we will see how much time he needs to prepare, we’ll see if they’re interested in compromising on these issues and if they are there might not be a need to have a hearing,” Basil said during Monday’s meeting.

The city council voted 7-4 to direct Basil to send the letter to Cole. Councilwoman Marna Kirkpatrick then made a motion to schedule a hearing for Redford, Harned and Ambach.

The council voted to table the motion, with council member Kirkpatrick casting the sole no vote.

“The citizens we represent deserve a decision on this matter, and without a hearing, we are simply postponing making the decision. This has been going on for far too long,” she said.

Councilman Wendell Honeycutt voted to deliver the letter but didn’t feel comfortable with setting a date yet because the council might have other complaints.

“For me, personally, they’ve lost my confidence in them because when people were so frightened by the new rates, all they did was say you don’t understand the math. I mean that’s really, that’s their answer for over a year,” he said.

While Honeycutt said he didn’t know if the board members had done anything that warranted their removal, he did say that he would never vote to reappoint Redford, Harned or Ambach again.

In January, Glasgow City Attorney Rich Alexander, at the request of Councilman Jake Dickinson, wrote three motions calling for the removal of Redford, Harned and Ambach from office for inefficiency and/or neglect of duties, following roughly a year of controversy surrounding the EPB’s electric rate structure that greatly increases the amount charged per kilowatt/hour during the hour of each month when demand is highest.

In response, EPB issued a letter to Alexander and Mayor Dick Doty requesting that Redford, Harned and Ambach be given “specific allegations of their claimed inefficiency, neglect of duty, misfeasance, nonfeasance or malfeasance in office” as well as 15 days to respond in writing and separate due process hearings so they could defend themselves from any allegations.

In February, the council approved a measure to hire Basil to serve as legal counsel, which included a $5,000 retainer and a maximum expenditure of $20,000 for his services.