JEA Annual Reports
The annual reports serve as JEA's annual financial notice to the bond Investment community and as an update for customers and the community-at-large. JEA is a not-for-profit, community-owned utility.
My work on the annual reports includes concept development, research, writing and oversight of the execution of concept.
Here is an excerpt from the 2006 Annual Report: The Nature of Our Business:
Chairman and CEO's Letter
Over the past year, JEA has remained steadfastly focused on the strategic initiatives which are the foundation of our plan for continued growth and success: operational excellence, reliability, community growth, environmental stewardship and strategic partnerships.
By concentrating on these initiatives, we have made significant strides in moving toward our goals and our mission to be the best electric, water and sewer utility provider in the nation.
During fiscal year 2006, JEA improved debt service coverage, maintained strong credit ratings and continued our favorable comparison with other public utility providers in the state. We also approved a new pricing philosophy; realized a small fuel fund surplus, which will be refunded to our customers in the form of lower electric rates in fiscal year 2007; and successfully expanded our fuel hedging program, helping to reduce the effects of fuel price volatility on our day-to-day business.
Such strides would not be possible without the experience and dedication that our team of leaders and employees brings to work each day. JEA’s strength emanates from the people who keep the lights on and the water and sewer running throughout our service area. And while our community and customer base continues to grow, JEA has held our workforce allocations in check for the seventh straight year supporting a 42 percent increase in productivity. At the same time, we have placed a high priority on employee safety and as a result have created a culture of safety among our workforce that has produced a record-low recordable incident rate that is four times better than the industry average and which represents an 80 percent reduction since 1997.
But our people are not only employees of the eighth largest public utility in the nation; they are proud stewards of the community in which we all live. Our JEA family shares a common love for this community and its precious natural resources. That is why JEA established environmental stewardship as one of our primary organizational goals and why we have undertaken specific initiatives that exceed the requirements of targeted environmental laws and regulations. In 2006, JEA became a partner with other local and state agencies in the River Accord to protect the St. Johns River. We are keenly aware of our impact on the river and will spend an additional $200 million over the next 10 years to continue the improvements already made at our wastewater treatment facilities.
JEA is proud of the commitment and capability of the employees who work daily to improve our processes for the benefit of our customers, our community and the river; ensuring the quality of life our community has come to expect and deserves. We are proud of our record of dependability and our never-ending quest to be the best in the business in order to provide our customers the best service and greatest value for their money.
Though there are always challenges ahead, JEA is poised to meet these opportunities to ensure that we continue to meet the needs of our customers. That is the nature of our business. That is JEA.