July 2001 • Page 13

Clark ElectricCooperativeYYYYYour Tour Tour Tour Tour Touchstone Energyouchstone Energyouchstone Energyouchstone Energyouchstone Energy®®®®® P P P P Partnerartnerartnerartnerartner

ManagerManagerManagerManagerManager �s Highlights�s Highlights�s Highlights�s Highlights�s Highlights

Commitment to CommunityCommitment to CommunityCommitment to CommunityCommitment to CommunityCommitment to CommunityThe commitment to community charge that ap-

pears on each member�s electric bill has been collectedsince October 1, 2000. The response of people whoqualified for the program (through the county socialservices departments) was overwhelming, and as aresult we ran out of money (actually we dispersedmore than we collected to date). Funds were distrib-uted on a first-come, first-serve basis, but there werejust more requests than we had money available for. Asa result, we have stopped further payments on electricbills to the low-income members who qualified. Thefiscal year starts in July this year, so hopefully therewill be more money available next year. We remindmembers to watch the newspapers for informationfrom the County Social Services Office about when togo in and apply. The sooner you apply, the betterchance you have of receiving a payment.

Cost of electricityCost of electricityCost of electricityCost of electricityCost of electricityMany people inquire about the future cost of

electricity because of the escalating prices of naturalgas, propane, and gasoline. The same people are alsoconcerned that what happened in Califor-nia will happen in our state. So far, it lookspretty good for the rest of 2001, asDairyland Power Cooperative (our gener-ating and transmission facility) has bud-geted for only slight increases. If powershortages become more serious and theprice is affected by the shortages, thingscould change. Dairyland Power generatesalmost entirely with coal, and right nowwe are seeing reports of higher coal prices.This could have an effect on our costs into2002, hopefully not too high to create fi-nancial burdens. Make sure that you par-ticipate in our load management system.This will help you and the cooperative getthe best possible price for electricity.

Long-term loanLong-term loanLong-term loanLong-term loanLong-term loanA topic from our annual meeting the past few

years has been the need for another long-term loan. Inmy tenure as manager, we have had to borrow longterm only once before, back in the late �70s, and thatwas for $1.75 million. This new loan will be $4.0million, with half to be used to pay off current short-term loans. Clark Electric has been very fortunate tonot have to have borrowed much over the years. Ourequity is currently over 80 percent, which is excep-tional. The problem is that our investment in plantcontinues to be over $1 million annually for upgrad-ing the electric system and equipment replacement.

The $4 million will be from two sources, one halffrom Rural Utility Services (RUS), formerly the RuralElectrification Administration (REA). The other halfof the loan will come from National Rural UtilitiesCooperative Finance Corp. (CFC), which is a financialcooperative that we are a member of.

"A few brief notes on important cooperative

subjects for all members"

NoticeNoticeNoticeNoticeNotice

How The Average Dollar Was Spent

Cost of Power58.3%

Depreciation6.7%

Taxes1.3%

Other Margins1.8%

Interest1.7%

Operations23.1%

Margins7.1%

A graph showing how your dollar was spent, notice howmuch goes towards purchasing the electricity to serve you!

During Year 2000

Our offices will beclosed in celebration of

Independance DayWednesday, July 4th

(Continued on page 14)

Page 14 • R.E.C. News

e-mail us at info@cecoop.com or at jknox@cecoop.come-mail us at info@cecoop.com or at jknox@cecoop.come-mail us at info@cecoop.com or at jknox@cecoop.come-mail us at info@cecoop.com or at jknox@cecoop.come-mail us at info@cecoop.com or at jknox@cecoop.com

Dick Adler, ManagerJohn J. Knox, Editor

124 N. Main StreetP.O. Box 190Greenwood, WI 54437

WWWWWWWWWWWWWWW.CECOOP.CECOOP.CECOOP.CECOOP.CECOOP.COM.COM.COM.COM.COM

For infomation onClark Electric Cooperative's

Dairy Farm Wiring Program & Loan Program with free inspections,

Contact John KnoxContact John KnoxContact John KnoxContact John KnoxContact John Knox Director of Member services Director of Member services Director of Member services Director of Member services Director of Member services715-267-6188 � 800-272-6188

Automated meters comingAutomated meters comingAutomated meters comingAutomated meters comingAutomated meters comingAt the last few annual meetings we have also mentioned

we are looking into automated meters that will send us yourmeter readings directly. Your board of directors has autho-rized the start, which will be for all of our Time-of-Dayaccounts. In the past, these meters have been the mostdifficult to read by our members, which has caused manyadjustments and delayed our billings to members. Hope-fully, later in 2001 the new system will be ready to install sothose members using T.O.D. will no longer have to readtheir meters and mark it on the billing statement.

When the system is installed, we may consider a changeof time for peak periods. Since we began Time-of-Day in theearly 1980s, the hours have been 6:30�9:30 a.m. and 5:30 to8:30 p.m. The peak periods have been changing some overthe years and we may have to add one hour in the morningand evening. Those who are on the Time-of-Day rate will benotified ahead of time to see if they want to continue.

This is going to be a telephone-type system, where themeter will be programmed to automatically call our com-puter during the night time and submit the reading from themeter. We will then use the reading to compute the nextbilling. Once this system gets installed, we will be pursuinga system for the rest of the meters, which may be an entirelydifferent system that sends meter readings through ourneutral line back to the office for computation.

Spring storms do damage

Mother Nature showed her fury on May 14by unleashing powerful storms. One such stormhit our area and did some damage to the distri-bution system. The storm produced large hailand heavy rains from Owen�Withee,Abbotsford, Colby, and down to Spencer. Thestorm blew down several barns and even tippedover two semi-trucks on Hwy. 29.

More than 600 members of Clark Electric�ssystem were without power due to the damage.The system had seven broken poles, with lots ofpower lines down. Clark Electric�s crews hadhelp from Taylor Electric Cooperative, whichsent down two men and a truck to assist inrestoring power. Our crews and Taylor�s crewsworked hard throughout the day and had every-one back in power by early evening. We want tothank Taylor Electric for their help�it was reallyappreciated. Remember, when there are powerlines down, stay away and call us immediatelyand keep others away for their own safety.

Some of the Clark Electric Linemen who helped restore power quicklyto our members: Dan Sturz, Warren Luedtke, Jeff Block, apprenticelinemen Chad Steffen, Josh Burns , and equipment operator Jim Rust.

With a little hard work things were back to normal

(Concluded from page 13)

Automation Coming

Dick AdlerCEO / General Manager

Until this new system is up and running, anda possible change in peak-hours is

established, we will not be adding any newconsumers to the T.O.D. rate.

July 2001 • Page 15

What makes us so specialBeing part of a cooperative has its advantages

Being a member of a cooperative might not seemspecial to some of our readers, but to others, being amember of a cooperative, especially an electric coop-erative, is very important. Some still remember whenthey first received power to their farms or homes. Onthe other hand, there are those who always have hadpower at our fingertips, ready at all times for us.

Young and old, we must all appreciate whatelectricity has done for us, and what it will continue todo for us. All of this made possible by your electriccooperative. Electric cooperatives all follow the same

11111 VVVVVoluntaroluntaroluntaroluntaroluntary and Open Membershipy and Open Membershipy and Open Membershipy and Open Membershipy and Open Membership�Cooperatives arevoluntary organizations, open to all persons able to use their servicesand willing to accept the responsibilities of membership, withoutgender, social, racial, political, or religious discrimination.22222 Democratic Member ControlDemocratic Member ControlDemocratic Member ControlDemocratic Member ControlDemocratic Member Control�Cooperatives aredemocratic organizations controlled by their members, who activelyparticipate in setting policies and making decisions. The electedrepresentatives are accountable to the membership. In primarycooperatives, members have equal voting rights (one member, onevote) and cooperatives at other levels are organized in a democraticmanner.33333 Members� Economic ParticipationMembers� Economic ParticipationMembers� Economic ParticipationMembers� Economic ParticipationMembers� Economic Participation�Memberscontribute equitably to, and democratically control, the capital oftheir cooperative. At least part of that capital is usually the commonproperty of the cooperative. Members usually receive limitedcompensation, if any, on capital subscribed as a condition ofmembership. Members allocate surpluses for any or all of thefollowing purposes: developing the cooperative, possibly by setting upreserves, part of which at least would be indivisible; benefitingmembers in proportion to their transactions with the cooperative; andsupporting other activities approved by the membership.

The Seven Cooperative Principles44444 Autonomy and IndependenceAutonomy and IndependenceAutonomy and IndependenceAutonomy and IndependenceAutonomy and Independence�Cooperatives areautonomous, self-help organizations controlled by their members. Ifthey enter into agreements with other organizations, includinggovernments, or raise capital from external sources, they do so onterms that ensure democratic control by their members andmaintain their cooperative autonomy.55555 Education, TEducation, TEducation, TEducation, TEducation, Training, and Inforraining, and Inforraining, and Inforraining, and Inforraining, and Informationmationmationmationmation�Coopera-tives provide education and training for their members, electedrepresentatives, managers, and employees so they can contributeeffectively to the development of their cooperatives. They inform thegeneral public, particularly young people and opinion leaders,about the nature and benefits of cooperation.66666 Cooperation Among CooperativesCooperation Among CooperativesCooperation Among CooperativesCooperation Among CooperativesCooperation Among Cooperatives�Cooperativesserve their members most effectively and strengthen the cooperativemovement by working together through local, national, regional,and international structures.77777 Concern for CommunityConcern for CommunityConcern for CommunityConcern for CommunityConcern for Community�While focusing on memberneeds, cooperatives work for the sustainable development of theircommunities through policies accepted by their members.

Safety ExcellenceSafety ExcellenceSafety ExcellenceSafety ExcellenceSafety Excellence

Bob Moseley, director of operations, and SandyHerrick, operations aide, with the Safety AccreditationAward presented to the cooperative.

Clark Electric was recently awarded a Certificate Of Excel-lence for "Safety Accreditation in recognition of its dedicationto employee and public safety and commitment to accidentprevention and loss control." This is a very prestigious awardthat cooperatives can earn. Our insurance companies lookfavorably to those who achieve this high honor.

"Sandy Herrick, operations aide, is largely responsible forall the important recordkeeping and compiling of the informa-tion," says Bob Moseley, director of operations. "When theinspectors come to the cooperative to look over the facilities,our lines, and our workers, they have continually found thevery best." A big thank you also to every employee at thecooperative who plays an important role in the co-op receivingthis award. Our daily incentive to provide safe working condi-tions helps us to obtain this honor.

This is the fifth consecutive time that Clark Electric Coop-erative has earned the Safety Accreditation Award. This awardspeaks highly of the cooperative employees who serve themembers of Clark Electric Cooperative.

basic rules and guidelines when doing business fortheir members. In fact, that�s how Touchstone ®

Energy came about.We abide by the seven cooperative principles in

our operation of the cooperative, as does every othercooperative in the nation. That�s what sets us apartfrom the investor-owned utilities throughout thestate and the county. These principles are inherentto our everyday operation, and they are what makesus so special.

Page 16 • R.E.C. News

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