What does it mean to be a member-owner?
“It really is your Cooperative. Powell Valley Electric Cooperative is a member-owned corporation. You buys shares in this corporation by paying a membership fee when you join and a bill every month. Your dividend is the electric service it provides you. You, as a member of this corporation, have a voice in the management and government. How? Since it is not practical to call a meeting of several thousand members for important decisions to be made, a meeting is held annually to enable you to elect representatives who can meet regularly and make these decisions. Three of these representatives are elected each year to serve on a Board of Directors for a period of three years. This makes a total of nine Board Members, with three being elected each year. Members of the Board of Directors must be members of the Cooperative, but cannot be employed by the Cooperative. Thus, nine individuals represent views of all of the members, much the same as representatives we elect to represent us in state and federal government. We recognize your views through this Board of Directors.”
Excerpt from the Powell Valley Electric Cooperative Member Handbook, revised March 2018