Folks who receive service from Farmers RECC are member-owners of the Cooperative. What makes an individual or business receiving service from Farmers RECC a ”member-owner” instead of a ”customer?” The answer is simple.

When you signed up to receive electric service from Farmers RECC, you became a member-owner of a not-for-profit cooperative.  A cooperative is a business owned by those it serves.  Unlike for-profit businesses, a cooperative’s primary focus is on providing a needed service for its member-owners and not on generating a profit for shareholders. 

Farmers RECC’s mission is to make sure our member-owners’ electrical power needs are met.  Our focus is providing you with reliable, competitively-priced electric power, and not on making a profit.   Like any other business, your cooperative needs to earn a profit, but those profits are minimized as much as possible and reinvested to help fund its operations for a period of time.  Those reinvested profits, or margins, are assigned to each member based on their usage for the year and are referred to as Capital Credits.  Each year, as financial conditions permit, the Board of Directors may designate that a portion of the Capital Credits be returned to the member-owners. 

The profits earned by large Investor-Owned Utilities go to their investors and stockholders – who are not necessarily their customers.  Their number one focus is maximizing shareholder value and earning a good return for their stockholders. 

Your Cooperative works hard every day to keep your rates as low as possible and your service reliable.  But it’s sure nice to know that when there are profits, they go back to you.

This year, the Farmers RECC Board of Directors authorized the distribution of $558,000 in Capital Credit refunds. The money being refunded this year represents 85% of net margins in 1998. If your capital credit refund is less than $75, then a credit will be applied to your bill. If your capital credit refund is $75 or more, then a check will be issued to you in April. Your refund amount is based on how much electricity you purchased during that year.

Farmers RECC is a local organization with deep roots in our community and a deeper commitment to the member-owners we serve. We are always there with you, reinvesting in your community. That’s why in an electric co-op, the people have the power.