2014 Orange County REMC September Newsletter

NEWS FROM YOUR COOPERATI www.myremc.coop CONTACT US OFFICE

812-865-2229 TOLL FREE 888-337-5900 BILL PAYMENTS 855-865-2229 CONTACT US BY EMAIL

orangecoremc@myremc.coop GENERAL MANAGER/CEO

Danny L. Arnold OFFICE HOURS

7 a.m.–5 p.m., Monday-Friday STREET ADDRESS

7133 N. State Road 337 Orleans, IN 47452 MAILING ADDRESS

P.O. Box 208, Orleans, IN 47452 EMERGENCY POWER OUTAGES

To report service interruptions, call: 812-865-2229 or 888-337-5900, day or night. Please have the phone number associated with your account ready when reporting outages. Please limit after hours calls to emergencies and outage situations.

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Eugene Roberts, DISTRICT 1 Randy Roberts, DISTRICT 2 Danny Easterday, DISTRICT 3 Rodney Hager, DISTRICT 4 Ben Lindsey, DISTRICT 5 Brian Hawkins, DISTRICT 6 George Key, DISTRICT 7 REMC KEY STAFF

Marty Frank, OPERATIONS MANAGER Marcy Bennett, OFFICE MANAGER Larry Pinnick, STAKING ENGINEER Michael Roberts, STAKING ENGINEER Misty Tincher, ACCOUNTANT Billy Chastain, MATERIALS MANAGER Mark Belcher, MARKETING/MEMBER SERVICES

Please join us in taking action; the EPA

We need your help to ensure affordable, reliable power ... again I hope you have heard many times over the past few months how important it is that you visit www.

Action.coop. During our annual meeting in June and in my columns since, I have asked members (and nonDANNY L. ARNOLD members) to join in urging the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to reconsider regulations it wants to put on our power plants. Those regulations can cost you hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars each year on your electric bill. More recently you may even have seen cooperative-sponsored ads on TV or heard ads on the radio urging you to become involved. This month, I’m asking you to help again.

Every day we rely on electricity. We depend on the refrigerator to keep our food fresh, air conditioning and heating to keep us comfortable and, of course, lights, on a daily basis. We also depend on electricity to charge our electronic devices. Whether it’s a phone to keep in touch with relatives, a tablet for students’ homework or a laptop to stream movies, these devices all have become integral to our daily routine.

At work, we rely on electricity to power our computers, phones, lights and to add to our productivity. Without consistent, reliable and affordable electric power, businesses will relocate, jobs will be lost, and prices of

MEMBER SERVICES

•Free energy analysis •Budget billing •Automatic payments •Security lights •Home security systems •Medical emergency monitoring •Air evac life team •Water heater and HVAC incentives (requires an EM switch) •Online bill payment options •Interactive Voice Response system . for payments and account inquiries via phone: 1-855-865-2229 •VISA, MasterCard and Discover accepted 4

ELECTRIC CONSUMER • SEPTEMBER 2014 • ElectricConsumer.org

many goods and services will increase.

That’s why Orange County REMC is so concerned about the latest proposed EPA regulations on existing power plants. This round of rules impacts the Hoosier Energy power plants on which we rely every day.

Cooperatives are different from other electric utilities. We are owned by our members. When we look at our power supply options, we are not driven to make a profit.

We strive to provide the most affordable and reliable electricity possible to our members.

That’s why we formed the Hoosier Energy Power Network and built the Ratts and Merom coal-powered plants years ago to keep costs affordable and supply our own power. It appears likely the Ratts plant will cease operations soon due to the cost of complying with earlier EPA regulations.

Now, the latest EPA proposals have the potential to dramatically increase the cost of operating the Merom station.

Owning our own, independent plants has allowed cooperatives to keep costs affordable. For co-ops, “energy independence” in part means independence from expensive, profit-driven power. The new regulations could endanger this independent supply of affordable electric power.

Electric cooperatives, like Orange County REMC, are small businesses. We’re not large utilities with several different power plants operating with a variety of fuel

IVE Rate Schedule (for July, August and September of 2014) Rate Schedule for Standard Service Standard Service Consumer Charge Standard Service Energy Charge Wholesale Power Cost Tracker Total bill x Indiana sales tax 7%

PA is at it again.

in.

sources. We built power plants when it made sense for our members. But the way the new rules are written, we might lose our independence. The proposed EPA regulation adversely and disproportionately affects electric cooperatives. That’s why we are telling the EPA that this regulation simply does not work for us.

When the EPA drafted regulations limiting greenhouse gases from new power plants, the agency received more than 500,000 emails opposing the regulation — many from our members.

Today, I ask you once again to please join the more than 100 Orange County REMC members who already submitted comment cards at the annual meeting and visit www.Action.coop to tell EPA you cannot afford these new regulations. Our voices were heard last time. The EPA took note of electric cooperatives, and our collective voice showed that co-op consumers were engaged. EPA needs to understand the impact that these regulations have on the people at the end of the power lines. Electric cooperative members are uniquely situated to help EPA understand that these regulations will cost Americans more money. The regulations also will cost Americans jobs. The new regulations simply will not work for rural Americans.

Please, also ask your friends and neighbors to join you and visit www.Action.coop and tell EPA co-op consumers cannot afford more regulation.

America needs a healthy economy. America needs jobs. America needs manufacturing.

Affordable, reliable electricity is the linchpin to these vital assets.

DANNY L. ARNOLD is general manager/CEO of Orange County REMC.

Employees celebrate anniversaries

Gary Cheatham 34 Years

Ed Thurman 20 Years

Rate Schedule for TOU-ETS Service TOU-ETS Consumer Charge TOU-ETS Off-Peak Energy Rate Schedule for Security Lighting Security Lighting- 100 W HPS (45 kwh) Security Lighting- 175W MV (80 kwh)

$26.00 $0.1124 $0.0019832

$5.40 $0.0691 $9.82 $9.82

Example for 1,200 kWh Standard Service Consumer Charge $26.00 1,200 kWh @ .1124 $134.88 Wholesale Power Cost Tracker @ 0.0019832 $2.38 Total $163.26 Indiana sales tax $11.43 Total bill $174.69 Example for 1,200 kWh (regular) and 750 kWh (ETS) Standard Service Consumer Charge $26.00 ETS Consumer Charge $5.40 1,200 kWh @ .1124 $134.88 750 kWh @ .0691 $51.83 Wholesale Power Cost Tracker @ 0.0019832 $3.87 Total $221.97 Indiana sales tax $15.54 Total bill $237.51 (Visa, MasterCard and Discover cards accepted)

Fall ETS Service Special Don’t wait for cold weather to find out your ETS units are not functioning properly. Call 812-865-2229 locally or 888-337-5900 (toll free) to schedule your ETS checkup.

REMC will lower the normal $25 service call to only $10 for the first unit and $5 for each additional unit. The ETS service call for the first unit is FREE, if you allow REMC to install an energy management switch on your water heater and/or HVAC equipment.

Billy Chastain 5 Years

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Orange County REMC News Dear REMC member,

I

n addition to delivering your electricity as safely, efficiently and cost effectively as possible, Orange County REMC is committed to offering other products and services that meet members’ needs and provide value in the territory we’re proud to serve.

Your cooperative has looked at cutting-edge technologies that can help expand broadband availability in our service area — because we believe that connectivity is so important for information, education, safety and entertainment.

We’re pleased to announce that Orange County REMC has formed a partnership with NRTC Rural Broadband to offer our members Exede satellite broadband service.

With download speeds up to 12 Mbps and plans starting as low as $59.94* per month, Exede offers speed and flexibility — to do whatever you need to do online much faster than you could before. In fact, a recent government report just ranked Exede number 1 in terms of delivering the performance they promised — 140 percent of advertised speeds.

As an REMC member, you receive free installation — a savings of $150! — and a $5 monthly discount for 24 months. It’s our way of saying thank you for your loyalty and to help you experience the benefits of a true broadband solution now available in our community.

If you’re interested in signing up for Exede, call 855-797-7855 any time day or night. NRTC Rural Broadband will answer any questions you have about Exede, help get your service activated and schedule a professional installation from a certified local company.

Even better, if you sign up by Oct. 31, you’ll receive a $50 Visa pre-paid card — an additional gift from Orange County REMC and NRTC Rural Broadband.

On behalf of all of the employees of Orange County REMC, it is an honor to be your electric cooperative and to deliver other products and services, like Exede, that are of value to you and to our community.

Sincerely, Danny L. Arnold General Manager/CEO *PRICING INCLUDES $49.99 MONTHLY SERVICE FEE AND $9.95 MONTHLY MAINTENANCE/WARRANTY FEE

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ELECTRIC CONSUMER • SEPTEMBER 2014 • ElectricConsumer.org

Smart meter installation in Chaillaux substation area Orange County REMC members served by the Chaillaux Substation will be receiving new Aclara TWACS meters in October.

These new meters are capable of two-way communication allowing Orange County REMC to send data to the meter, to test that it is working properly and to pinpoint outages. The TWACS meters also help reduce costs for the co-op with automated meter reading.

Member service costs are further reduced by the new meters’ capability to provide instant meter data, allowing REMC employees to answer member requests and billing inquires and provide members with the information they need to make energy use decisions. The new meters also optimize the co-op’s ability to detect meter tampering and electricity theft. TWACS meters also support prepaid metering, remote connect and disconnect capability.

The TWACS meters use PROasys (Power Reliability Outage Assessment System) technology to help utilities make use of the data they collect from the meters to quickly assess system status and identify outages. PROasys allows Orange County REMC to quickly determine where to send the line crews, and reduces the time it takes to complete restoration of service to members.

Attention Prepay Members: Starting Sept. 1, members participating in the prepay program will be disconnected seven days a week, 365 days a year if their prepay balance reaches a negative balance. To make a payment, members will need to call 855-865-2229 (toll free) or visit the website www.myremc.coop.

Join us for 2014 Valeene Homecoming!

Sept. 20 beginning at 11 a.m.

Valeene Community Park Orange County REMC will have a table at the event, promoting programs available to members, along with prizes and giveaways.

Help clean up Patoka Lake

Volunteers are needed to help remove trash and debris from the shores of Patoka Lake on Saturday morning, Sept. 6.

Keeping the shoreline clean is vitally important as Patoka Lake provides drinking water for more than 31,000 households and businesses in 11 southern Indiana counties.

That’s more than 100,000 people!

Trash pickup and volunteer sign-in begins at 8 a.m. at two locations: Hoosier Hills Marina and Painter Creek Boat Ramp. Volunteers will enjoy FREE entrance to the property for the day as well as boat rides to and from cleanup locations around the lake. The event ends at noon with a FREE fish fry at Hoosier Hills Marina for participating volunteers. All supplies will be provided, however, volunteers should wear sturdy shoes or boots. For more information, please call Patoka Lake Regional Water and Sewer District at 800-313-5589 or Patoka Lake Visitor Center at 812-685-2447.

ElectricConsumer.org • SEPTEMBER 2014 • ELECTRIC CONSUMER 29