2013 11 bre mm

NOVEMBER 2013

matters MEMBERSHIP

A MONTHLY NEWSLETTER FROM BLUE RIDGE ELECTRIC MEMBERSHIP CORPORATION

Did you know...

you can call Blue Ridge Electric anytime to discuss available energy efficiency tools or payment options that can help you better manage your budget? Our goal is to offer choices that allow you to take control of your costs.

Prepare now for winter heating bills Blue Ridge offers the following tips to help you keep your electric bill lower in colder weather: Be energy efficient Taking energy efficiency steps helps you reduce usage and costs. Simple steps can help: set thermostats to the lowest comfortable level in winter (68 degrees is suggested); be mindful using space heaters since they can use significant amounts of electricity; and open curtains on south-facing windows to let in the sun’s heat. For tips customized to your home, take a free energy assessment at BlueRidgeEMC.com or call your local Blue Ridge Electric office.

FlexPay Our “pay as you go” plan puts you in

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control! Purchase electricity in any amount you choose — daily, weekly or monthly — with no deposits or late fees. You can pay online, by phone, or in our office using debit/credit cards, check, or cash. Get account status alerts by text message, phone call, or email.

You can also monitor your usage and account balance at MyUsage.com.

Budget Billing Equalize your payments over 12 months.

In the twelfth month, your account is “evened up” with a final payment or credit applied. Combine this with bank draft for even more convenience.

Tips for members needing assistance paying their bill • Make payment arrangements using

our automated telephone system that extends your due date for three days.

At $10 each, it’s much less than a $40 late fee.

• Call us before your account becomes subject to disconnection so we can help you make payment arrangements and avoid additional costs.

• If you’re subject to disconnection, contact your local social services agency to see if you qualify for special assistance such as our Operation Round Up® or state and federal programs providing crisis assistance.

• Call us if you need to discuss an individual payment arrangement plan.

10/9/13 1:13 PM

the

perspective From Blue Ridge CEO Doug Johnson

RidgeLink benefits members Our cooperative’s mission is to provide the lowest cost of power to our members and to improve the quality of life for the people we serve. One innovative way we’re achieving this is through our RidgeLink subsidiary.

You may not have heard a lot about RidgeLink since it’s relatively new and provides services only to businesses. But it’s playing a very important role in benefitting our members by producing a financial benefit that we use help keep your electric bill more affordable.

Through leasing our cooperative’s fiber optic network, RidgeLink provides broadband capacity to Internet service providers, wireless companies and other entities that provide high speed Internet service to local governments, hospitals and education systems. This helps these organizations operate more efficiently while improving the overall quality of cell phone coverage and broadband capabilities in our area.

Attracting new businesses that can offer jobs to local people is one of the most exciting benefits of RidgeLink. With the growth of technology, most businesses now require broadband access and wireless services to operate. We’re excited to be able to offer our fiber optic foundation to help make our area a viable, attractive location for well-paying jobs. This is a perfect example of how we partner with our communities on economic development to improve local quality of life.

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Unfortunately projections indicate that wholesale power costs will continue to increase for all electric utilities due to increased environmental regulations. From a rates management perspective this makes our strategic initiative with RidgeLink increasingly important for our cooperative.

As we continue to search and evaluate new strategic growth opportunities, I will keep you informed on our progress. Our most recent initiative was building a fiber line outside of our electric service area into Avery County to help MCNC and Education and Research Consortium (ERC) of Western North Carolina provide much needed broadband service to several local government and educational facilities in that county. We are also doing several fiber builds inside our footprint, primarily to improve cell phone service, and we are studying additional fiber builds outside our area.

“Blue Ridge Electric’s newest subsidiary, RidgeLink, is a business-to-business fiber optic network that makes our area a viable, attractive location for well-paying jobs in the near future.”

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- Doug Johnson

By aggressively pursuing these opportunities for RidgeLink, teamed with our success at Blue Ridge Energies, we can have a meaningful impact on the finances of Blue Ridge and your electric bill as a member.

Our long term goal is for our two subsidiaries to provide $4 million per year in financial benefit which would equal 40 percent of our annual net margins. Today, we are at $2 million or 20 percent of net margins.

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At Blue Ridge Electric, we’re committed to working in innovative, effective ways to keep your bills as low as possible and to make life better ― now and for generations to come!

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Portable generator safety While Blue Ridge Electric has one of the highest reliability records in the nation, severe weather sometimes leads to power outages. Portable generators offer benefits when an outage affects your home, but can pose serious safety hazards to you and others if not used and installed correctly. We urge members to follow these tips: • Follow the manufacturer’s instructions when operating your generator.

• Never connect a portable generator directly to your home’s wiring — this can cause backfeeding along power lines and electrocute anyone coming into contact with them. For the same reason, never plug a generator directly into a regular household outlet.

• Make sure your generator is properly grounded according to the manufacturer’s instructions.

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• Never overload a generator. They should only be used when necessary and to power only essential equipment or appliances.

• Never refuel a generator while running.

• Always turn off equipment powered by the generator before shutting it down.

• Contact Blue Ridge Electric if you plan to use a generator, especially during an outage.

Thank you for following safe installation and operating procedures when using portable generators. This helps protect the safety of your family as well as our line technicians who are working on power lines and equipment during outages.

• Operate generators in a dry place outside, away from intake vents into your home, to avoid dangerous fumes inside your house.

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Give a ÂHUGÂ this holiday season

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Are you looking for a meaningful gift to give this holiday season? Why not give something the entire family will benefit from?

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• Always plug appliances directly into generators. Use heavy-duty, outdoor rated extension cords that have a grounded threeprong plug and are in excellent condition.

Somebody Gave You a “HUG” this Christmas

Purchase a Holiday Utility Gift (HUG) certificate.

The value of the certificate will then be applied to the Blue Ridge Electric member’s account.

“Holiday Utility Gift”

Gift Certificate Presented to __________________________________________________ In the amount of $ _____________________

Contact your local Blue Ridge Electric office and give somebody a “HUG” this holiday season!

Compliments of

_________________________________________________

The amount listed above has been applied to your account at Blue Ridge Electric Membership Corp.

®

STATEMENT OF NONDISCRIMINATION BLUE RIDGE ELECTRIC MEMBERSHIP CORPORATION Blue Ridge Electric Membership Corporation is the recipient of Federal financial assistance from the Rural Utilities Service, an agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and is subject to the provisions of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended; Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended; the Age Discrimination Act of 1975, as amended, and the rules and regulations of the U.S. Department of Agriculture. In accordance with Federal law and U.S. Department of Agriculture’s policy, this organization is prohibited from discriminating

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on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, or disability. The person responsible for coordinating this compliance effort is Julie O’Dell-Michie, Senior Vice President and Chief Administrative Officer. To file a complaint of discrimination, write to: USDA, Director, Office of Civil Rights, Room 326-W, Whitten Building, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, DC 20250-9410, or call (202) 7205964 (voice or TDD). Both USDA and Blue Ridge Electric Membership Corporation are equal opportunity providers and employers.

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Security, beauty and convenience!

Lighting the path to safety Outdoor security lights help provide a safer environment around your home. Properly planned lighting has shown to deter burglars and the peace of mind better lighting gives you can help you rest easier.

The right outdoor lights can also add to your home’s attractiveness, as well as light up areas like your home’s driveway so that it’s easier to pull in and out of your driveway at night.

There are many benefits to outdoor lighting and Blue Ridge Electric has a variety to select from at an affordable monthly fee that is added to your monthly electric bill.

Blue Ridge offers a variety of affordable outdoor lights that can give you peace of mind and a safer landscape.

Call your local district office or visit BlueRidgeEMC.com to have your outdoor lighting installed and ready to provide you with greater security, beauty and convenience!

CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER Doug Johnson

EDITOR

Renée R. Whitener

PRODUCTION SUPERVISOR Susan Simmons

DISTRICT OFFICES Caldwell Watauga Ashe Alleghany Wilkes PowerLine®

(828) 754-9071 (828) 264-8894 (336) 846-7138 (336) 372-4646 (800) 451-5474 (800) 448-2383

Toll Free

(800) 451-5474

(PowerLine® is an automated account information and outage reporting system.) (for members outside of the service area.)

To report an outage at any time, call one of the number listed above.

OFFICE HOURS: 8:30 am - 5:00 pm, Monday-Friday Night deposit available.

Visit us on the web: BlueRidgeEMC.com

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Bylaws, Service Rules and Regulations Updated At their September board meeting, Blue Ridge Electric’s Board of Directors approved the following updates to the cooperative’s Bylaws and Service Rules and Regulations.

Members may obtain full copies of these documents at BlueRidgeEMC.com or at their local Blue Ridge Electric office.

Bylaws, Section 1.08, Member Access: A member who has an individual grievance or concern that is not resolved to his satisfaction at the local district Cooperative office, after allowing a reasonable time for investigation and action, may appeal to the Chief Executive Officer for redress.

If he is still not satisfied, after allowing a reasonable time for the Chief Executive Officer to act, he may contact the Cooperative to make a written request to the Executive Office Manager who will arrange for the member’s request to be reviewed by the Cooperative’s Corporate Officers Group or the Board of Directors. At the discretion of the Cooperative, members whose requests are granted may be scheduled to first meet with the local district Board Members. In the event a member lacks resolution after meeting with local district Board members, the member may submit a renewed request for access to the full Board of Directors.

Service Rules and Regulations: a detailed “Member Privacy Policy” was added. To summarize, the policy addresses the cooperative’s processes for protecting members’ private information. While the cooperative must collect and retain certain personal and financial information in order to provide services, Blue Ridge Electric does not share this information except to the extent necessary to provide services requested by the member, maintain the member’s account and transactions, and to meet business needs as detailed in the Service Rules and Regulations. If a member becomes inactive by leaving the cooperative, his or her information continues to be protected.

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