Pattern Energy Defends ‘Do Not Call’ Practice in Email to County Committee

Article Summary: Committee Chair Chad Ruppert shared an email exchange with Diogo Botelho of Pattern on Aug. 3 in which the company said its database “Do Not Call” designation accomplishes the same result as a list and that it is following all applicable laws on filing lease memos. No motion was recorded.

Pattern Energy Key Points:

Ruppert shared an email and Pattern’s response regarding recording leases and a do-not-call list.

Pattern’s response, quoted in the minutes, calls a database designation and a list “an apples-to-apples comparison.”

The company states it is “following all applicable laws in regard to filing lease memos.”

The item was listed for “Update/Approval,” but no motion or vote appears in the minutes.

MONTGOMERY COUNTY — Pattern told Montgomery County officials that its internal “Do Not Call” designation for landowners accomplishes the same thing as keeping a list, in an email read to the County Board’s Development & Personnel Committee on Monday, Aug. 3, 2026.

Committee Chair Chad Ruppert shared an email and a response from Diogo Botelho of Pattern regarding recording leases and a do not call list. The minutes quote Botelho’s response in full:

“The statement previously provided to the county in regards to the ‘Do Not Call’ designation is an accurate representation of our process of contacting local landowners. We see having a ‘Do Not Call’ designation in our database, versus having a ‘list,’ as an apples-to-apples comparison. The end result is the same – we respect the landowner’s wishes, and it is visible to all land agents and employees working on the project. We are following all applicable laws in regard to filing lease memos.”

The minutes do not record any committee discussion of the response, do not date either email, and do not reproduce the message Ruppert sent. No motion was made and no vote was taken.

Background

The exchange follows earlier committee discussion of a county-wide code of conduct for land agents and energy project representatives, adopted in May 2026. At the committee’s July 6 meeting, Ruppert reported that a filing by Pattern came after the 30 days required by county resolution and that no action had been taken on a required “do not contact” list. Those were Ruppert’s characterizations as recorded in that meeting’s minutes; the text of the resolution does not appear in materials reviewed.

On June 25, 2026, a letter from Pattern dated June 11 was filed with the county clerk naming 11 individuals — described in the letter as Pattern employees and subcontractors — working across departments to support development of The Shoals Renewables. Botelho’s name appears on that filing. No county document reviewed states what relationship, if any, Pattern has to that project beyond the personnel support described in its own letter.

Because no motion was recorded, the committee took no action. Any county action on land agent conduct would require a committee recommendation and a vote of the full County Board.