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What is a Co-op?

 

Tri-County Electric Cooperative is a not-for-profit electric cooperative created to serve you, the member-owners. This means you get more than just electric service. As a member-owner, you receive ownership and a voice in the cooperative, capital credits, and locally owned and operated offices.

The Cooperative Difference

Electric Cooperatives differ from municipalities and investor-owned utilities because we are not-for-profit. We return margins back to the membership in the form of capital credits. Each member-owner has the opportunity to participate in their cooperative through democratic member control.

Tri-County Electric Cooperative is a not-for-profit electric cooperative created to serve you, the member-owners. This means you get more than just electric service. As a member-owner, you receive ownership and a voice in the cooperative, capital credits, and locally owned and operated offices.

 

Electric Cooperative Facts

Tri-County Electric Cooperative is one of 64 distribution electric cooperatives in Texas and one of more than 960 electric cooperatives across the nation. Together, we power 75% of the nation's landmass and are all guided by the Seven Cooperative Principles with an emphasis on those we serve instead of the back pockets of investors. We are local and live and work in the same communities as our membership.

 

Cooperative History

Cooperative Culture

Do you ever wonder what "cooperative" or "co-op" means? In the dictionary, cooperative means "involving mutual assistance in working toward a common goal." Tri-County Electric Cooperative is just one example of a company working under the cooperative model.

Many well-known companies operate under the cooperative model. Large corporations like Ocean Spray, Sunkist Growers, Land O'Lakes and California Dairies are all cooperatives. Even those who rarely watch TV have seen the Cabot Cheese commercials that thank their consumers for buying their cheese. Cabot is a farmer-owned cooperative of 1200 families located in New England and New York.

The concept of cooperatives is not a new thing. In fact, co-ops have been around for over a century and a half. As the mechanization of the Industrial Revolution was forcing more and more skilled workers into poverty, the weavers and farmers near Rochdale, England, decided to band together to open their own store selling food items they could otherwise not afford. The first cooperative documented was the establishment of the Rochdale Society of Equitable Pioneers in 1844. This group of 30 tradesmen in England is most famous for developing the Rochdale Principles that are now known as the Seven Cooperative Operating Principles. Cooperatives all around the world use these seven basic principles to fundamentally run the establishment.

 

Rural Electrification Administration

Electric cooperatives are a product of Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal. In the early 1900's, the utility companies that provided the cities with energy believed building power lines into the rural areas of America would not be profitable. Therefore, most of America was dark and not given the opportunity to utilize a commodity most citizens could not function without today. The Rural Electrification Act of 1935 brought the Rural Electrification Administration, also known as the REA, to life. Farmers and ranchers could group together and borrow federal money to establish an electric cooperative owned by the members.

America would soon be impacted in a way no one predicted. Before the establishment of the REA, an aerial night view of Texas would show clusters of light representing large cities like Dallas, Austin and El Paso, and even smaller clusters scattered throughout the state. This all changed by 1940. Nationall 567 co-ops were established in 46 states and served 1.5 million member-owners.

Today, over 960 electric cooperatives serve 42 million member-owners in 47 states. Texas alone has 64 distribution co-ops and 11 generation and transmission co-ops. A whopping 320,000 miles of line meander throughout 241 of the 254 Texas counties and serve 2.1 million meters.

America was founded on the basis of a capitalist system of free enterprise. Cooperatives have helped fuel the success of our nation by providing both a market for producers and a source for consumers. While many people believe a company should provide the highest economic return possible for investors, co-ops think differently, because service is equally important. The Cooperative Difference goes back to exceptional member service, and encouraging member participation through capital credits and participation in the democratic control.

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Aledo, Main Office

200 Bailey Ranch Road

Aledo, Texas 76008

Member Services

Call: 817.444.3201

Fax: 817.444.7679

 

Mail: 200 Bailey Ranch Road

Aledo, Texas 76008

 

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©2023 Tri-County Electric Cooperative Inc. All Rights Reserved.

  • My Cooperative
    • Member Service
      • Ways to Pay
      • How to Read my Bill
      • Fees & Charges
      • TCEC Connect
      • FAQs
      • Outage Texting
      • AirMedCare
      • Co-op Connections
    • About Tri-County EC
      • Service Territory
      • What is a Co-op?
      • 7 Cooperative Principles
      • Tri-County EC History
      • Management
      • Board of Directors
      • Director Elections
      • Capital Credits
      • Bylaws
      • Annual Meeting
  • Electric Service
    • Residential Service
      • Start. Transfer. Stop.
      • New Construction
      • Builders & Developers
      • Pool Permit Application
    • Commercial Service
      • New Commercial Service
      • Builders & Developers
  • Energy Solutions
    • Solar
    • Generators
    • Energy Efficiency
  • Outages & Safety
    • Outage Center
      • Outage Map
      • Report my Outage
      • Outage Safety
      • Street Light Outage
    • Safety Strong
      • Call Before you Dig
      • Safety Tips
      • Safety Checklist
      • Safety Quiz
      • Vegetation Management
  • Community
    • Scholarship
    • Youth Tour
    • Presentations & Demonstrations
  • Careers
    • Join the Family
    • Job Opportunities
  • News
    • Texas Co-op Power
    • Member Bulletin
    • News Room
    • Recipe Submission
  • Contact Us