BY DAN HILDEBRAN
Telegraph Staff Writer
KEYSTONE HEIGHTS- Clay Electric Cooperative said its board of trustees declared a $12 million capital credits refund for members who received service from 1993 through 2021.
The utility added that qualifying members would see the credits in their March bills.
“Capital Credits reflect the cooperative’s not-for-profit and member-owned status and represent each member’s pro-rata share of any margins left over at the end of the year after all expenses are paid,” the co-op said in a news release. “Capital Credits are a unique benefit of being served by an electric cooperative. Investor-owned electric utilities send their profits to stockholders, and municipally owned utilities return their profits to city coffers for use in road-paving or similar projects”.
The co-op added that this year’s refund is the 49th consecutive time it has refunded capital credits.
This is the sixth successive year the co-op has declared a $12 million capital credits refund. In 2016 trustees approved a $6 million refund, increasing it to $8 million the following year.
In other news from Clay Electric Cooperative:
Power costs decrease
The co-op said members would see a decrease in the power cost adjustment portion of their bills in March and will likely see another reduction in April.
“Members using the industry household average of 1,000 kWh of power will now pay $146,” the co-op said. “The previous cost was $149.50”.
The utility credited falling natural gas prices for the drop in the rate.
“If natural gas prices continue trending lower, the PCA may be lowered again in April,” it said.
The March and potential April PCA decrease follows a $5 increase last September and a $10 drop in December.
Annual meeting continues under new format
Clay Electric said its 85th annual meeting would be held on March 25 at Keystone Heights High School under the same format it initiated last year.
Before the COVID-19 Pandemic, the utility held its annual meeting under a tent near State Road 100 in front of its Keystone Heights district offices after giving away free lunches.
Last year the co-op switched to a morning session at the high school’s football stadium, serving a light lunch.
The annual meeting still features speeches from cooperative leaders, door prizes, and announcing the results of board of trustee elections.
Another change initiated since the pandemic is voting for trustees by online or absentee ballots only. Previously, members could cast ballots in-person during the annual meeting.
This year four board seats are up for election. During district trustee meetings in January, Cindy Loose was nominated as the candidate for the District 1 seat. Kelley Smith was nominated for the District 2 seat, Carl Malphurs secured the District 4 nomination, and Jimmy Wilson was nominated for District 6. Smith, Malphurs, and Wilson are all incumbents.
Loose is running for the seat formally occupied by her deceased father: Carl Hagglund.
While all four nominees are running unopposed, members may still vote for write-in candidates.
Online vehicle auction in March
The co-op said it would operate its vehicle and equipment auction online from March 21-28.
“Once the auction is underway, information about the auction items can be found at www.ggauctions.com,” the co-op said. “The phone number is 407-886-2211.”
The utility added that photos and information on each vehicle and other auction items would be posted on the auctioneer’s website when the auction begins.
A partial list of the vehicles and equipment that will be auctioned includes:
- Astec RT360 Trencher
- Butler LT1014 tilt trailer
- International 7400 Altec 60’ ROW bucket
- Five Ram 5500 4x4s with Versalift
- Vermeer chipper
- Ford Ranger pickup
- Five Ford F-150s
- Three Ford F-350s (utility bodies)
- Hyster S50ft forklift
- Silverado 3500
- Chevy 4500 Crew cab utility body
- Imperial equipment trailer
- Chevy K3500 utility body
Scholarship applications accepted
The co-op said it is now accepting applications for its annual scholarship program. High school seniors of any public, private, or home-school whose primary residence is served by Clay Electric may apply.
Applications are available at ClayElectric.com and at all district offices. Applications must be received by April 3.
“Selections are based on community involvement and extra-curricular and academic achievements,” the utility said. “The youth scholarship program is funded by unclaimed money that would normally have to be turned over to the state.”
Clay Electric added that to provide an equal representation of scholarship winners throughout its service area, no more than one student at a given public school can receive a scholarship, and not every school will have a scholarship recipient.
