Capital Credits: The Cooperative Difference at Work
As a member of Wasco Electric Cooperative, you are not just a customer— you are an owner. One of the benefits of belonging to a not-for-profit electric cooperative is receiving capital credits.
Each year, any revenue remaining after providing safe, reliable service is allocated back to members as capital credits, based on how much electricity you buy. Rather than pay profits to outside shareholders, margins are reinvested in our system—line upgrades, substation maintenance, and reliability improvements.
Wasco Electric’s board reviews our financial health annually to determine if capital credits can be retired, typically on a first-in, first-out basis. Retirement amounts and timing vary depending on system needs, weather effects, and major projects. Watch your mailbox for details on this year’s retirement and how to choose your preferred payment method.
To simplify payments:
- Credits less than $25 are automatically applied to your electric account.
- For amounts between $25 and $250, you may have a check mailed or have the amount credited to your account.
- Amounts over $250 are mailed directly to you as a check.
If you move off our system, your capital credits remain yours, so keep your contact information current. Capital credits are one way we practice the cooperative principle, Member Economic Participation—returning value to members while supporting the communities we serve. As always, contact us with questions.
Legislation Could Support Wildfire Mitigation
The advent of fall brings us closer to the end of another long and challenging fire season in Oregon. Our highest priority at Wasco Electric Cooperative is keeping our members, employees, and communities safe—and we will continue to work year-round to mitigate the risk of wildfire.
It would also help if our elected officials in Washington, D.C., passed pending legislation to give us the right tools to effectively manage vegetation near power lines.
We understand the U.S. Senate may soon consider the Fix Our Forests Act (S. 1462). A version of this legislation has already passed the U.S. House of Representatives with strong bipartisan support.
The bill makes some key changes to how federal forests are managed, including many that enhance wildfire mitigation efforts. Specifically, it would:
- Expand electric utility authority to remove hazard trees from within 10 feet to 150 feet of electric power lines.
- Establish expedited timelines for federal agency review and approval of vegetation management plans.
- Streamline timber sale and removal processes to reduce fuel loads near electric power lines.
We will keep you posted on this important legislation as we get closer to a vote in the Senate— and we may even ask you to lend your voice to the effort.
To learn more about how you can get involved in supporting the Fix Our Forests Act, visit the Voices for Cooperative Power website.
General Manager Lindsay Forepaugh