Quick Fact: Staff Compensation

November 4, 2021

Posted in Co-op Governance

OPALCO conducts a thorough comparative analysis to verify that salaries are competitive within our utility industry. Hiring and retaining top notch personnel is critical to the operation of OPALCO’s complex electrical and communications systems.

OPALCO’s wage philosophy is directly in line with the national network of electric co-ops. OPALCO pay rates are competitive based on electric utility cooperatives in the region.
Utilizing technology and retaining highly talented personnel allows OPALCO to keep staffing levels flat/lower by doing more with less. OPALCO has maintained an average of 50 full time employees (FTE’s) over the last 10 years and this level of staffing is forecast to remain consistent in the upcoming years.
OPALCO has been fortunate to attract and hire a very talented new generation of staff in key positions and must remain competitive to retain them in an environment where utilities nationwide are scrambling to find qualified employees.
The wage rates of our union represented employees follow a collective bargaining agreement, which goes through its own prescribed comparison process every time the collective bargaining agreement is renewed.
The IRS requires us to publish our top 8 paid employees – 5 of which are Journeymen Lineworkers.
Annual Board Review: Each year the board does a detailed and comprehensive review of OPALCO’s strategic directives and how well the General Manager (GM) and the organization is accomplishing those goals. The Board reviews GM compensation data from:
- over 22 cooperatives (IRS Form 990 cooperative tax filings)
- an industry publication listing 83 Northwest electric utilities and
- an independent wage analysis by a compensation consultant

A note for the 2025 Board President, Vince Dauciunas:

As President of the OPALCO Board of Directors, I want to address questions regarding the compensation of our General Manager.

The OPALCO Board is made up of local member-owners—your neighbors—who take our fiduciary responsibilities seriously. Compensation decisions are not made lightly. They result from a structured annual process that follows OPALCO’s Strategic Directives and includes formal performance evaluations, assessment of organizational results, and detailed comparisons using multiple independent compensation benchmarks from peer electric cooperatives and regional utilities.

It is also important to understand the scope and complexity of OPALCO’s operations. Our General Manager is responsible for overseeing an island-based electric system with unique reliability and emergency response challenges, major infrastructure investments, regulatory compliance, and the management of a successful broadband subsidiary. Serving geographically dispersed island communities requires experienced leadership and a high level of operational expertise.

The Board adjusts compensation only after careful review, balancing the need to retain qualified leadership with our obligation to be responsible stewards of member resources. Market-competitive compensation supports the stability, continuity, and performance our cooperative depends on.

This same approach applies across the organization. From lineworkers and engineers to IT, accounting, member services, and executive leadership, OPALCO’s wage policy is to remain competitive within the cooperative utility industry so we can attract and retain the skilled professionals required to deliver safe, reliable electric and broadband services.

OPALCO belongs to its members. We welcome questions and remain committed to transparency. The Board’s role is to act in the best long-term interests of the cooperative and the communities it serves.

All three independent wage efforts have concluded that the GM’s compensation falls well within the range of competitive market practices for GMs in organizations similar in size and location.

OPALCO General Manager Compensation (2023 Tax Report 990) 2024 base wage is $380,309 for OPALCO and $141,351 bonus from Rock Island. The General Manager total compensation is ~1.4% of OPALCO’s 2024 operating budget. The additional compensation mentioned on the 990 is the estimation of benefits to include medical and actuarial estimate of retirement. The salary is comparable to cooperative utilities across the region. OPALCO’s General Manager has oversight responsibility over one of the more complex and environmentally sensitive electric distribution cooperatives in the nation (serving a 20 island community via 25 submarine cables). OPALCO’s General Manager also has management responsibility over the highly successful internet subsidiary, Rock Island Communications. OPALCO’s General Manager has more than 40 years experience in the infrastructure and utility industry and holds a BS degree in Business and an MBA in Finance.

Here are some BASE SALARY comparisons to other General Managers of electric utilities:

2024 OPALCO GM Base Salary: $380,309
2024 Average Base Salary of 10 WA Co-ops: $359,401
2024 Average Base Salary of 12 OR Co-ops: $341,940
2024 Average Base Salary of 22 Regional Co-ops: $349,877
2024 Base Salary of Seattle City Light GM: $493,770
2022 Snohomish PUD: $600,000
2024 Portland General Electric – $1,157,916 base (total comp $7,367,025)
2022 Total Salary of Puget Sound Energy CEO $991,585 base (total comp $4,760,931)