Rural Power Coalition (RPC) has released their Electric Cooperative Organizing Toolkit, a comprehensive resource for member-owners of electric cooperatives in the United States and anyone interested in entry points to improving their local energy system. The toolkit highlights key issues such as affordability and includes topics from co-op governance to agrivoltaics and securing community benefits plans.
RPC is a network of place-based community organizations that work to increase energy democracy in the rural electric cooperative (REC) utility sector. Roughly nine hundred RECs operate across 47 states and serve an estimated 42 million people, who are member-owners of their REC. RPC coalition members aim to increase utility accountability and spread innovative pathways for sustained investment in rural clean energy. The toolkit, along with an upcoming member-owner training series next year, serves as a resource for member-owners interested in advocating their REC Boards to implement proven solutions rooted equally in consumer protections and community benefits.
One solution highlighted in the toolkit is inclusive utility investment, a financial mechanism that helps overcome pervasive barriers to clean energy upgrades. Millions of households, including REC member-owners, are routinely excluded from accessing energy efficiency upgrades due to factors like income, homeownership status, or credit history. RECs have been some of the earliest adopters of inclusive utility investment, recognizing it as an innovative pathway to increase affordability, access to energy efficiency upgrades, and sustained investment in the clean energy economy.
Through inclusive utility investments, RECs can provide energy efficiency upgrades and recover their investment without requiring the member-owner to take on the upfront cost. Cost recovery for these upgrades occurs through a fixed charge on the customer’s utility bill, which cannot exceed 80% of the project’s estimated annual savings. Available to both homeowners and renters, there is no credit score or income requirement.
This approach is particularly relevant for rural communities, which continue to experience some of the nation’s highest energy burdens and affordability challenges. When paired with complementary programs, inclusive utility investment can further help households meet their energy affordability needs. Implemented on scale, inclusive utility investments can put downward pressure on rates, key to improving energy affordability.
From the Toolkit:
If you’re a member-owner of an electric co-op, you’re in good company. “Communities served by rural electric co-ops have led the way advocating for Inclusive Utility Investments and winning them, with thousands of households getting upgraded as a result,” said Minns. “In fact, some of the largest and longest running inclusive utility investment programs are run by electric co-ops starting in Kansas.”
One success story, mentioned in previous sections, comes out of the Roanoke Electric Cooperative, which launched an inclusive utility investment program in 2015, called Upgrade to $ave. Since then, one Yale report on this specific program found some very significant results, “Average realized savings have been on the order of 50% of the average electricity bill prior to the installation of the upgrades.”
EPA’s ENERGY STAR defines minimum standards for inclusive utility investments including strong consumer protections, and robust community advocacy and accountability are vital to ensure these standards are upheld during the stages of program development, design, implementation, and impact analysis (measurement & verification).
More details on inclusive utility investment can be found in Section Three of the toolkit.
Download the toolkit here.
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