OFFICIAL RATE INCREASE NOTICE – Effective April 1, 2023
Effective April 1, 2023, Access Energy Cooperative will implement the first rate increase since 2016. The cooperative has been managing and absorbing cost increases and supply shortages for materials, equipment, fuel, and power costs for the past few years. Your board of directors strongly emphasizes providing you, our members, with exceptional service. They only consider a rate increase when it is necessary. We are a not-for-profit electric cooperative and exist to provide safe, reliable, and efficient electric service.
The primary factor driving this change in rates stems from the increase in the cost of power. Purchased power is our largest expense and accounts for 68% of your bill. In addition, it has become more difficult to obtain materials due to supply chain issues. Our operational and overhead expenses have increased. Over the last two years, our cost of materials has increased on average about 30%. To continue providing reliable service to our members, we have been ordering and storing materials in preparation for future needs to avoid delays caused by supply issues.
The board, management, and employees of Access Energy Cooperative pride ourselves on being responsible stewards of your resources. While there are factors like weather, regulatory compliance, and fuel costs, over which we have limited or no control, we do everything in our power to control expenses. To maintain the reliability, quality, and financial stability of the service we provide, it is necessary to raise our rates due to the continual rise of virtually all aspects of today’s cost of living.
There are ways to take control of your energy bill. We have energy efficiency and rebate programs to help you find ways to lower your usage. Our SmartHub App allows you to track your usage and set alerts that notify you when you have reached selected usage levels. SmartHub is available to all members for free. You can use it to view and pay your bill and report outages. Sign up for SmartHub on our website at www.accessenergycoop.com, or download the SmartHub App on your mobile device.
The Access Energy Cooperative board and management team have thoroughly discussed increasing costs and how they affect the cooperative. Decisions to raise rates are taken very seriously. Additional power cost increases are expected in the future, and your board will continue to evaluate the potential impact they will impose. We expect there will be additional rate increases for Access Energy Cooperative members in 2024 and 2025.
The rates that will be in effect April 1, 2023, are shown on the reverse side of this letter. You will also receive an official rate increase notice in the mail for each account you have. Please contact us with any questions or concerns. You can call our office at 1.866.242.4232 or email us at contactus@accessenergycoop.com.
The official notice with the rate information will be mailed to all member accounts on February 1, 2023.
We will be holding three member information meetings to answer questions and concerns regarding the rate increase.
If you have questions about this or anything, please contact me at the office. We want to be available to all members who have questions.
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Letter from David Tutor, Associated Electric Cooperative, Inc.
2023 power supply rates impacted by fuel costs, inflation, energy policies
By David J. Tudor
As the leader of Associated Electric Cooperative, I work with a team of dedicated employees generating electricity for six transmission and 51 distribution cooperatives, including Access Energy Cooperative. Our mission, plainly stated, is to provide reliable, affordable and responsibly-generated electricity to those we serve.
Associated is governed by our 12-person board of directors; transmission member-owners who provide strategic guidance and make key decisions as representatives of their membership across the 51 cooperatives in Iowa, Missouri and Oklahoma.
In September, the Associated Electric board of directors made the difficult decision to approve a budget for 2023 with a wholesale power rate increase that will go into effect on April 1, 2023. This decision was not taken lightly and will be Associated’s first rate increase to wholesale power rates since 2017, despite the significant costs incurred during historic winter storm Uri in February 2021. During storm Uri, Associated’s 57 cooperatives experienced no rolling blackouts.
Associated’s wholesale power rates are designed to reflect the costs to serve the system and collect revenues in proportion to those costs. With the increase next year, member rates will still be competitive in the region and nation.
As you have seen in your area and across our country, costs for many things are way up, but none more than fuels and energy-related products and services. Likewise, Associated’s need for a rate increase is due to growing revenue requirements across many categories but is driven primarily by higher prices for the fuel and transportation used to generate most of our electricity. Supply and demand determines much of the cost for our fuels, as does inflation, the regulatory environment and energy policies from Washington D.C.
Our pledge to you is that Associated and its employees will continue to do our best to protect the reliable, affordable power you have come to expect. As a cooperative, it’s in our DNA. And it’s our privilege to serve this cooperative system.
David J. Tudor joined Associated Electric Cooperative as chief executive officer and general manager in May 2016, bringing more than 30 years of experience in the energy industry, including electric generation assets, wholesale commodity trading and utility management.