Your ECE Board of Directors has approved a capital credits refund of $5.5 million for 2021. This year, the board has determined we can meet our mortgage requirements and fulfill an important part of the cooperative business model—member economic participation. As an ECE member, you share in the financial success of your cooperative, and you will see your portion of the capital credits payout reflected on your bill due in December.
When there is a margin over the cost to operate, a portion is allocated to you, based primarily on your energy use and cost of basic service charges. The money is placed in your capital credits account. We retain this member capital for up to 25 years, which is very common in the industry, and use it for infrastructure improvements, system maintenance, and emergencies.
Capital credits are paid back to you over time if the financial condition of the co-op allows. This year’s retirement includes all accumulated capital credits from 1996 and a percentage of all other years allocated to members. Thank you for being a member and helping your co-op to grow and maintain a reliable and safe electric distribution system.