October is National Co-op Month, a time to celebrate what makes cooperatives different and the members who make it all possible. At Piedmont Electric Cooperative, being a co-op means more than delivering reliable electricity. It means putting members first, investing in our communities and working together to create long-term value for the people we serve.
Since 1938, Piedmont Electric has operated as a member-owned cooperative. That means when you receive electricity from us, you’re more than a customer — you’re a member and an owner of your cooperative.
What makes a cooperative different?
Electric cooperatives across the country are guided by seven cooperative principles: Voluntary and Open Membership; Democratic Member Control; Members’ Economic Participation; Autonomy and Independence; Education, Training and Information; Cooperation Among Cooperatives; and Concern for Community.
Those principles may sound formal, but you can see them at work every day at Piedmont Electric.
Members elect the directors who guide the cooperative, helping ensure our decisions reflect the needs of the communities we serve. We regularly seek member feedback through surveys and focus groups, share information about energy efficiency and safety, and work alongside other electric cooperatives through mutual aid when major outages require additional crews and resources.
Your ownership comes back to you
One of the biggest differences between a cooperative and a traditional utility is what happens to the value we create.
As a not-for-profit cooperative, revenues remaining after expenses are called margins. Those margins help support the cooperative and are ultimately allocated to members as capital credits based on their electricity purchases. Since 1975, Piedmont Electric has returned more than $35 million in capital credits to members.
Membership also gives you access to programs designed to help you manage your energy use and save money, including time-of-day and demand rates, the Smart Thermostat Savings Program, electric vehicle incentives and rebates for qualifying energy-efficient equipment.
Small change makes a big difference
The cooperative difference extends beyond electric service.
Through Piedmont Electric’s Helping Hand Foundation, members can voluntarily round their monthly electric bills up to the nearest dollar. Those small contributions add up to support energy assistance, scholarships, Bright Ideas education grants, youth programs and grants for nonprofit organizations serving our communities.
Since the foundation was established in 2017, more than $1.4 million has been invested in local nonprofits, students and neighbors in need. Behind that number are students pursuing their education, teachers bringing new ideas into their classrooms and families receiving help during difficult times.
It’s one example of a principle at the heart of everything we do: Concern for Community.
Reliable power. Local roots. Member owned.
National Co-op Month gives us an opportunity to celebrate what has defined Piedmont Electric for generations. We’re locally rooted, governed by the members we serve and committed to making the communities we share stronger.
Whether it’s returning capital credits, helping members save energy, supporting local students and teachers or lending a hand to a neighboring cooperative after a storm, the cooperative difference is about working together — and making sure the value we create comes back to you and your community. That’s what it means to be member owned. And that’s something worth celebrating.