We the rate payers of Russellville Electric Board demand the termination of Charles Canida for gross mismanagement of rate payer funds including lavish Christmas Parties at the Marriott Shoals, expenses of personal nature and benefit to Charles Canida, attempted extortion and-or of local business owners by threatening to withdraw REB business unless they complied with his demands (this has been documented by law enforcement). 

Additional improper expenses by Canida on the REB credit card include:

Women's clothing at a boutique ($987.00).

While attending a work conference on the Gulf Coast, Canida charged numerous dinners at a cost of approximately $2,000 for each meal. It is unknown who Canida hosted at these $2,000 dinners.

Purchase of tickets to Dollywood ($736.37). 

Canida, using ratepayer funds, paid illegal bonuses (disguised as "performance and safety incentives) to REB board members totaling $150,000 in his tenure as REB General Manager. After the local newspaper requested documents related to these bonuses, board members returned $28,000 in these illegal payments. 

When the local newspaper and a Russellville City Councilman requested documents under Alabama's Open Records Act, Canida demanded a $1,164 prepayment be made. When asked to clarify this excessive cost, Canida changed the amount two times and charged $95/hour for his time in supposedly preparing these records that should have been provided at no cost to the public.

Purchased, with no advance approval from the Board as reflected in minutes of all REB meetings, two luxury vehicles for his use in an eight-month span, including an $83,000 2021 GMC Yukon Denali, a top of the line luxury model GMC compares to Mercedes.

All of these excessive, unnecessary and/or illegal expenses came before, during and after the time that Canida, in a REB meeting in December 2021, declared REB revenue "was down" and as a result, he believed a 3.1% increase in electricity rates was necessary. This came after Canida was quoted at a December 2020 meeting stating the REB was in good financial shape and he did not anticipate a rate increase for at least three years. In reality the only thing that went up was the expenses.