Former SCNA President Rosanna Herber is among three candidates competing for SMUD’s Ward 4 director position.
Incumbent Genevieve Shiroma, who has served 20 years on the SMUD board, chose not to seek re-election. Shiroma is also a former SCNA board member.
Herber worked for SMUD for more than two decades, most recently as senior program manager, before retiring last year.
“I am running for the SMUD board because I want to give back to my community,” Herber wrote earlier this year. “I believe that my 20-year career in the utility industry makes me perfect for this position. My top three issues are 1) Keep Former president of SCNA, 2 others running for SMUD director the rates low and the lights on; 2) Grow innovative and green energy programs; and 3) Ensure that SMUD continues to be a strong community partner.”
Herber’s opponents are security consultant Angela Spease and businessman Mark Graham, both Elk Grove residents.
Spease announced her campaign in August, saying, “I have always felt one of my main purposes in life is serving the community and helping others. On the SMUD board, I will be a strong advocate for hardworking families and ratepayers.”
Graham made news in 2016 when he sued SMUD in a dispute over its “smart metering” program. After a Superior Court judge dismissed the lawsuit, The Sacramento Bee characterized Graham as a “persistent critic” of the program.
Graham describes himself as a “businessman, political activist dedicated to working for the public interest … and the candidate most likely to be independent, think for himself, bring a fresh set of eyes to the SMUD board unencumbered by the establishment’s agenda, and to be truly responsive to the voices of SMUD customers.” He sees the key issue as “the health hazards of SMUD’s ‘smart’ electric meters.”
Campaign filings as of late September indicated the Herber campaign had received about 200 contributions. Among Herber’s largest contributors were the Stonewall Democratic Club, $5,000; Plumbers & Pipefitters Local 447, $3,000; International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers PAC and Laborers Local 185 PAC, $2,500 each; and Rainbow PAC, $2,000. The other two candidates had reported no contributions, according to Sacramento County’s election website.
Ward 4 is an irregularly shaped district encompassing the southwest portion of SMUD’s service area. It includes all of Curtis Park except those portions north of Broadway and east of Franklin Boulevard. It also includes most of Land Park, Pocket, part of Elk Grove, Franklin and Walnut Grove.
The SMUD website says the directors’ job “is to establish policies and values about how we serve you and to set the long-term direction SMUD will take as we move forward.”