John Bilda, former Norwich Public Utilities general manager, was sentenced Thursday to six months in prison for taking lavish trips to the Kentucky Derby and a West Virginia golf resort using an electric energy cooperative’s money meant to help local utilities stabilize electric rates.

Judge Jeffrey A. Meyer sentenced the 59-year-old Bilda to six months in prison and three years of supervised release, along with conditions that include mental health counseling and substance abuse treatment for his admitted alcoholism. Bilda was ordered to voluntarily report to prison on July 12.

Bilda, the former vice chairman of the Connecticut Municipal Electric Energy Cooperative board of directors, was the third and final person to be sentenced this week in U.S. District Court in New Haven following their convictions in December 2021 on one count each of theft from a program receiving federal funds. The trips were funded with CMEEC revenues intended to be returned to the member municipal utilities to stabilize electric rates.

The courtroom was crowded Thursday with members of Bilda’s family, friends and supporters, many of whom had written what Meyer called “almost a telephone book-size pile” of letters of support for Bilda. Supporters described his almost lifelong record of service to the Norwich community and his dedication to his job at NPU.

Meyer said he wanted to weigh Bilda’s 30 years of public service, his professional career and standing as an outstanding citizen as much as the “10 days of partying” Bilda engaged in during the 2015 trips.

Meyer also considered Bilda’s personal struggles with alcoholism, which included three hospitalizations and mental health struggles. Meyer told prosecutor Tara E. Levens that he found it “disappointing” that prosecutors had recommended an enhanced prison sentence because Bilda had not disclosed his excessive alcohol use to his probation officer.

But Meyer said the seriousness of the crime required a prison sentence, as he found that Bilda had misappropriated funds meant to help electric ratepayers to instead go on “personal vacations” and golf outings. While Meyer added a ruling that Bilda violated his position of public trust, he said he did not use that to increase his prison sentence.

Bilda did not address the court Thursday. His attorney, Thomas J. Murphy called the suffering Bilda has endured since the public outcry over the trips erupted in 2016 as a sentence already.

Murphy had asked for a sentence of no prison time with community service, substance abuse and mental health counseling. The sentencing guidelines based on the theft verdict and financial loss called for 27 to 33 months in prison.

Murphy declined to comment after the sentencing on whether Bilda will appeal to the U.S. Second Circuit Court of Appeals in New York.

Meyer did not impose a fine, and restitution orders will be decided at a later date.

Meyer ruled earlier during Thursday’s sentencing hearing that Bilda is responsible for $213,782 in financial losses to CMEEC, the collective costs of the 2015 trip to the Kentucky Derby and two trips that year to The Greenbrier golf resort in West Virginia.

The jury convicted Bilda, along with former CMEEC and Norwich utilities commission chairman James Sullivan, and former CMEEC CEO Drew Rankin of one count each of theft from a program receiving federal funds for the 2015 CMEEC trips to the Kentucky Derby and The Greenbrier golf resort in West Virginia.

The jury acquitted the three and two other defendants, former Groton Utilities commissioner Edward DeMuzzio and former CMEEC CFO Edward Pryor on conspiracy charges and theft charges stemming from the 2014 Kentucky Derby trip. U.S. prosecutors withdrew charges related to the 2016 trips during the trial.

In August 2015, Bilda, Sullivan, Rankin and DeMuzzio were the only ones who attended what was called a four-day “scouting trip” to The Greenbrier resort to see if it would be suitable for a full board retreat. The August trip cost over $21,000.

Bilda also attended the much larger retreat, costing $109,017, that was held there in October 2015.

Rankin was sentenced on Tuesday to 12 months in prison and three years of supervised release, and Sullivan was sentenced to six months in prison and three years of supervised release Wednesday.

Attorneys for Sullivan and Rankin said they plan to appeal their cases.

During Thursday’s sentencing hearing, Meyer ruled that the costs of the entire 2015 trips should be attributed to Bilda as he engaged in “jointly undertaken criminal activity” for golfing outings and lavish personal vacations using money that would have been turned over to member municipal utilities for electric rate stabilization.

Meyer rejected Bilda’s attorneys’ arguments that the trips were legitimate board retreats. Meyer called any CMEEC discussions during the foursome August 2015 trip as “stray shop talk,” while they played golf, ate extravagant dinners and toured The Greenbrier resort. Rankin had testified that the group discussed CMEEC business for 35 to 40 hours.

Bilda’s attorneys, Murphy and James J. Healy, argued that there should be no financial loss attributed to Bilda for any of the trips.

Attorney Murphy said Bilda maintains the retreats accomplished the goal of board member bonding that fostered greater working relationships among municipal utility representatives. The results brought tremendous success to CMEEC and added millions of dollars to the members’ rate stabilization funds rather than costing the funds money.

Bilda had testified during the trial that the improved board business relationships added $175 million in value to CMEEC, a figure disputed by U.S. prosecutor Levens, who noted that Bilda changed the figure at different times during his testimony at the federal trial and previously during Norwich Ethics Commission hearings.

Bilda, along with Sullivan and Rankin, maintained that the CMEEC Kentucky Derby trips, described as strategic retreats, were legitimate board activities to foster improved working relations among the board members who represented the six CMEEC municipal utility owners. Attorneys argued that the money used for the trip was CMEEC revenues and did not belong to the member utilities.

But during Rankin’s sentencing Tuesday, Meyer cited the membership agreement between CMEEC and its members that states revenue from CMEEC’s Margin Fund is to be distributed to the member utilities’ rate stabilization funds each month. The defendants’ attorneys repeatedly said margin funds “minus expenses” go back to the member towns. The only listed expense from the Margin Fund was for the Kentucky Derby trips.

c.bessette@theday.com