Minutes of the 85th Annual Meeting of Members

RURAL ELECTRIC COOPERATIVE, INC. LINDSAY, OKLAHOMA

MINUTES OF THE 85^th ANNUAL MEETING OF THE MEMBERS

 

October 3, 2024 and

October 5, 2024

The 85^th Annual Meeting of the Members of Rural Electric Cooperative, Inc. was a hybrid meeting again. It started off with a drive-thru registration on Thursday, October 3, 2024, from 3:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. An in-person meeting was held in the REC Multi-Purpose Center, Lindsay, Oklahoma, Garvin County with registration from 8:00 to 10:00 a.m. and the business portion starting at 10:00 a.m. on Saturday, the 5^thday of October 2024.

 

A video presentation titled "Powering - Oklahoma Association of Electric Cooperatives" opened the meeting.

 

Welcome

Mr. Gary Jones, President of the Cooperative, welcomed the REC membership and guests to the 85^th Annual Meeting and mentioned it was good to see the members in person.

 

Call to Order

President Jones, who presided over the meeting called the 85^thAnnual Meeting of the Membership to order.

 

Invocation

Vice-President Scott Christian gave the invocation.

 

Parade of Colors, National Anthem and Pledge of Allegiance

Mr. Christian introduced the Ball Smith Post 23 of the Lindsay American Legion, who presented the Parade of Colors.

 

Mr. Christian then led the membership in the Pledge of Allegiance with Cara Belt leading the singing of the National Anthem.

Introductions

Mr. Dusty Ricks, CEO of Rural Electric Cooperative, welcomed the group and expressed his appreciation to them for attending the meeting.

 

Mr. Ricks introduced REC's Board of Trustees, Co-op Attorney and their spouses. He noted that their combined years of service to the co-op was over 160 years. He also thanked WFEC employees, Howie Jackson and David Sontag for being in attendance and setting up a booth. Mr. Ricks also thanked our Youth Tour Ambassador, Abby Pettijohn for talking to our members about our Youth Tour Program and Steven Beck from OAEC Advertising and Marketing.

 

Mr. Ricks introduced retired Trustees Merlene Rust and Charles Crawford, retired employees, Ed Bevers, Barbara Russell, Teresa Billingsley and Delmar Payne and current employees and thanked them for their dedication to the co-op and its members.

 

He introduced the Annual Meeting Committee members, including Nominating, Planning and Credential & Elections. He thanked them for their service to the co­ operative.

 

Determination of Quorum

President Jones reported that based upon a report given by REC's Secretary­ Treasurer, Mr. Brent Bacon, certifying registration of 693 members was the official count and that a quorum was present for the conducting of business at the 2024 Annual Meeting of the Membership of Rural Electric Cooperative, Inc. A total of 5% (326.1 of REC's 6,522 members) was required to be registered to constitute a quorum.

 

Notice of Proof of Publication and 2023 Minutes

It was acknowledged that the Annual Meeting Notice was published in seven different area newspapers, as well as in REC's monthly publication "Co-op Comments", Facebook and REC's website and mailed to each member. The Official Notice mailed to each member also included an acknowledgment that the 2024 Annual Meeting minutes are posted on the REC website and the Official Ballot to vote for candidates to be seated on the Board of Trustees for each district.

 

Motion to Dispense with the Reading of the Notice of Proof of Publications

President Jones presented the Reading of Notice and Proof of Publication to the members. Mr. Thomas Merrel from Lindsay/Dibble area made the motion that the membership dispense with the reading of the Notice and Proof of Publication. Mr. Richard Arn from Lindsay seconded the motion. With no further discussion, the motion was unanimously adopted.

 

Motion to Dispense with the Reading of the 2023 Minutes of the Annual Meeting of the Membership

Mr. Jones called for the reading of the minutes of the 2023 Annual Meeting of the Membership. Ms. Betty Collins from Lindsay made the motion that the membership dispense with the reading of the minutes of the 2023 Annual Meeting. Mr. Joe Terrell from Elmore City seconded the motion. With no further discussion, the motion was unanimously adopted.

 

President's Report

President Gary Jones made his remarks to the membership.

 

Mr. Jones then asked all REC employees to make their way to the stage.

 

President Jones praised the employees for their continuous hard work and effort to their quick response of getting power restored for every member each time they are called out. He referred to the July 4^th, 2024, storm where we had crews out, all hours of the night. Quickly yet safely to restore numerous down poles. Mr. Jones stated, " Enhancing the Quality of Life, is the motto at REC, and the safety of our crews is the biggest concern to all".

 

Mr. Jones encouraged members to study our maps on our website and that are also shared via Facebook. He informed the members how every outage shows on the map in red and the exact line that the outage is attached to. This helps our dispatchers to know where to send the crews. President Jones explained to the members our "War room" where our dispatchers are diligently working to communicate with crews and get them to where they need to be. He assured the members that we are always fully prepared for whatever storm may come our way.

 

Mr. Jones also discussed the cooperatives goals and priorities.

 

President Jones mentioned to the members, "Safety is the number one goal for our employees and members". Mr. Jones thanked the members for their patience during outages and assured them that we are always working as quickly and safely as possible.

 

Mr. Jones informed the members that REC has not had an increase in rates since 2018. OG&E has had 10 increases in the past 2 years.

 

Mr. Jones concluded his remarks by thanking the crowd for attending the 85^thAnnual Meeting.

CEO'S Report

Mr. Jones presented CEO, Dusty Ricks who presented his report to the members. He thanked everyone for attending the 85th Annual Meeting of the Membership. He stated that it is important that we fulfill the requirements of our bylaws and conduct a meeting annually.

 

Mr. Ricks mentioned to the members that in the next few months we will be releasing a new form of bill. He stated that the format is very efficient and user friendly. Mr. Ricks informed the audience to watch our Coop - Comments for upcoming news on when they will be sent out. He also reinsured the members that our cost remains the same. We will not have any increase in prices.

 

Mr. Ricks stated that it has always been our goal to provide you with reliable electricity, as economically as possible - a job that our Board of Directors and employees take seriously.

 

Mr. Ricks presented an overview of the 2023 REC Annual Report. He reported on the financial condition of Rural Electric Cooperative. Mr. Ricks reported that the value of our plant continues to grow annually. As of December 31, 2023, The Total Value of our Distribution System was $107,787,964 which is up $18,706,414 from four years ago. Also, our equity in that $100 million is $55,657,067 million or 55.8%.

 

Mr. Ricks noted that twenty years ago, REC had 53 employees and today we also have 53 employees providing our services to you. The number of meters we provide, and service has increased by nearly a third and our annual kWh sales have more than doubled during these twenty years.

 

It was reported that 71% of our accounts are residential and farm accounts providing 26% of our annual revenue. While 29% of our accounts are commercial and industrial customers, which provide 71% of our revenue.

 

Mr. Ricks also noted that 69% of the total cost of providing electricity for our members is to purchase that electricity from WFEC. 24% of that cost is used for maintenance of the plant.

 

Mr. Ricks updated the members on Green Energy (i.e., solar, wind and hydro power). It continues to be a goal for Rural Electric Cooperative and Western Farmers Electric Cooperative, the Power Generation and Transmission Cooperative that provides electricity to REC. Renewable energy sources are not always reliable. We simply must have fossil fuels to be there when wind and solar fail.

 

During 2023, Mr. Ricks reported that REC paid $1,027,950 to the local schools located in the six counties located in our service area.  Since 1947, REC has

returned $20.6 million dollars to our schools. An additional $1,189,758.23 was paid through WFEC to schools in REC's service area.

 

Mr. Ricks stated that Rural Electric Cooperative strives to return a portion of our accumulated Capital Credits back to our members. In 2023, REC was able to return $963,174 back to our members. WFEC returned an additional $421,947.

 

Mr. Ricks noted that REC shares a concern for our communities by participating in several civic, community, youth and school events to support our members. We also support our local volunteer fire departments with financial grants annually and many of you enjoy the trees we give away. Mr. Ricks asked the members to be patient as REC spraying crews are in the process of spraying right-of-ways and clearing trees. He stated that trees are a big cause of outages.

 

We send eight 8^th grade students each year to Energy Camp in Hinton OK. We also send three juniors to Youth Tour in Washington D.C., and three students to Youth Leadership Camp in Steamboat Springs, CO. REC also awarded ten scholarships to seniors to help further their education. Mr. Ricks stated, " These kids, they are our future".

 

Mr. Ricks reminded the members that Operation Round-Up is a very worthwhile program that we would encourage everyone to participate in if you are not already involved. This program will round up your monthly bill to the next dollar and place that additional money into this fund. The Operation Round-Up Foundation money is used to help families with financial hardships. The most you could donate in a year is $11.88 and the least amount is 12 cents.

 

Mr. Ricks noted that in 1996, a group of co-op members formed a political action group formerly known as Action Committee for Rural Electrification - ACRE now called America's Electric Cooperatives, PAC. 50% of the donations comes back to Oklahoma and the other 50% is spent in Washington D.C. Mr. Ricks also told the members about the opportunity to participate on the state level through OEC(Oklahoma Electric Cooperatives PAC). He encouraged the members to join and to contact the co-op to do so.

 

Mr. Ricks thanked the members for being a part of this meeting. He stated, "We are proud to serve you daily and strive to continue and maintain a positive reputation".

 

In closing, Mr. Ricks made mention that we at REC strive to live up to the Seven Cooperative Principles while providing affordable, dependable and reliable electric service to our members and you can be confident that your Board of Directors and the employees of YOUR co-op have your best interests and well­ being in mind each and every day!

Election Report

Mr. Ricks called on Ms. Lisa Whitman, Co-op Attorney, for presentation of the 2024 Credentials and Elections Committee report.

 

Ms. Whitman explained the voting procedures and introduced the Credentials and Elections Committee. She reported that Mr. James Byrd had been elected Chairperson and Ms. Joy Pyle had been elected Recording Secretary for the committee.

 

Ms. Whitman then called on the Chairperson of the Credentials and Elections Committee to give his report on the Election of Trustees. Mr. Byrd stated that a total of 624 votes were cast. He then reported to the membership the result of the election as follows:

 

For Office 3, District 1 - Scott Christian     587 yes votes     22 no votes

For Office 3, District 2 - Johnny Harrel     580 yes votes     28 no votes

For Office 3, District 3 - Mark Finch     594 yes votes      15 no votes

 

From these results, Chairperson James Byrd declared the following people were elected to the Board of Trustees of Rural Electric Cooperative, Inc. for a three-year term:

 

Office 3- District 1 - SCOTT CHRISTIAN

Office 3- District 2 - JOHNNY HARREL

Office 3- District 3 - MARK FINCH

 

 

Adjournment of REC's 85^th Annual Meeting of the Membership

With there being no further business to come before the membership, President Jones declared REC's 85th Annual Meeting of the Membership adjourned. The business meeting adjourned at 11:05 a.m.

 

Prize Drawings

Immediately following the adjournment of the meeting, prize drawings were held. Each registered member received a $25 credit on their bill. The REC employees drew for three (3) grand prizes of $500 gift certificates for electricity. Seventy-five (75), $75 gift certificates for electricity, a 18volt cordless portable inflator kit donated by WFEC, and two (2) children's bikes were given away.

The list of winners of the prize drawings are attached to these minutes.