Wellesley Municipal Light Board approves director's 6 percent raise, passes WeCare budget

WELLESLEY — June 17, 2026 — Wellesley Municipal Light Board unanimously approves director pay raise and WeCare sustainability budget at annual reorganization meeting. The board, meeting June 17, reelected Ned Hall as Chair and Jeff P. Wechsler as Vice Chair for fiscal year 2026-27, then voted 5-0 to give Director Dave Bugbee a 6 percent compensation adjustment — 3 percent cost-of-living plus up to 3 percent merit — citing top-decile safety performance, strong reliability metrics, and management of a challenging financial-systems transition. The board also approved a revised WeCare clean-energy budget with a battery storage cost-sharing component removed, following objections from two members who said the arrangement did not directly accelerate emissions reduction. Sustainability Director Chris Loh presented data showing the MLP's portfolio has moved from 55 percent carbon-emitting in 2020 to a projected 14 percent in fiscal year 2027, already meeting the state's 2040 non-emitting mandate. The board directed Loh to study a restructured WeCare 100 percent participant rate that could reduce a typical residential customer's monthly premium from roughly $30 to roughly $5, pending a formal rate hearing.