Kenney quietly names new PGW board
Mayor Kenney quietly appointed on Wednesday a new board of directors for Philadelphia Gas Works, whose first order of business may be to release information about its predecessors' decision to approve a controversial bonus plan for PGW senior executives.
Mayor Kenney quietly appointed on Wednesday a new board of directors for Philadelphia Gas Works, whose first order of business may be to release information about its predecessors' decision to approve a controversial bonus plan for PGW senior executives.
The nonprofit Philadelphia Facilities Management Corp. (PFMC), which acts as PGW's board of directors, faces a Friday deadline from the Philadelphia Gas Commission to respond to inquiries about the bonus plan.
The Gas Commission, which approves PGW's budget, says it was unaware of the plan, which paid eight executives a total of $333,348 in bonuses in December. PGW says the bonus plan, whose aim was to induce executives to remain employed with the utility while efforts were underway to sell it, was included in the budget but was not explicitly spelled out.
Ultimately, the city-owned gas utility was not sold. The bonus plan came to light in an April 10 Inquirer article.
PFMC's seven unpaid members will be led by Seth Shapiro, chief operating officer of the Goldenberg Group, a development firm. He replaces David Seltzer, a principal in Mercator Advisors, who chaired the board for eight years.
Other members are Louis Rodriguez, who heads Rodriguez Consulting, an engineering and land-surveying firm; James Engler, deputy mayor for policy and legislation; Marian B. Tasco, the former city councilwoman who headed the Gas Commission for nearly 24 years; Catherine Paster, the city's first deputy finance director; Al Mezzaroba, former president of the Pennsylvania Convention Center; and Leigh Whitaker, SugarHouse Casino's vice president of communications.
Paster is the sole holdover from the previous board, which approved the retention-bonus plan.
Advocates say bonuses are commonly granted to retain key company leaders during corporate mergers. PGW says confidentiality agreements precluded its leaders from disclosing the information to the Gas Commission.
Another issue facing the new PFMC board, which met for the first time Wednesday, may be the utility's oversight. Kenney has said that his administration aims to streamline PGW's governance structure, which some critics have called unwieldy because decisions require approval from bodies with overlapping responsibilities.
In addition to PFMC, many PGW decisions require the approval of the mayor, City Council, the Gas Commission, and the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission.
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