CEO
It’s that time of year for you to get the credit you deserve for sustaining your local electric cooperative. This year, we will retire capital credits to members who received electric service during the years 1994, 1995, 1997 and 1998.
Bartholomew County REMC will refund $742,975 from 1997 and 1998 and $323,940 from Hoosier Energy, our wholesale power provider, from 1994 and 1995. These capital credits are a return of your patronage (investment) in BCREMC.
Current active members will receive capital credits from these years in the form of a bill credit. If you receive your bill mid-month, the refund will be on the December bill. Those that receive their bill at the first of the month, will see the refund on your January bill.
You might not realize it, but when you signed up to receive electric service from Bartholomew County REMC you became a member—and owner—of an electric utility. Therefore, instead of returning leftover funds, known as margins, to investors, we issue capital credits to our member-owners. The amount you receive is in direct proportion to the amount of electricity you used during the years being retired. Detailed records are maintained to show how much capital each member is allocated during the years of service.
When cooperatives take in revenue above operating costs, those margins are kept as working capital for approximately 25 years to operate the cooperative before being paid out to members. All members who purchase power from Bartholomew County REMC provide funds to help finance our operations.
If you move or no longer have electric service with BCREMC, it is important that past members keep their address current with us, so that future disbursements can be properly mailed. Capital credits are reserved for members, even if they move out of our service territory.
If a member has passed away, BCREMC capital credits allocated from all years of service can be paid in full to the spouse (if not listed jointly on the account) or heir(s) of the member.
Capital credits remain one of the member’s most tangible indications of true ownership in the cooperative. Bartholomew County REMC is proud to report that your cooperative is financially stable and proud to return capital credits back to you, our members.
Wishing you and your family a safe and happy holiday season!
