NEWS FROM YOUR COOPERATI www.dmremc.com CONTACT US
Daviess-Martin County REMC TOLL FREE
800-762-7362
GENERAL MANAGER
Dave Sutter
OFFICE HOURS
7:30 a.m.– 4 p.m., Monday-Friday STREET ADDRESS
12628 E 75 N, Loogootee, IN 47553 MAILING ADDRESS
P.O. Box 430, Loogootee, IN 47553 SERVICE INTERRUPTIONS
To report an outage or emergency, call 812-295-4200 or 800-7627362 day or night. BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Dean Harrawood, PRESIDENT John Edwards, VICE PRESIDENT August Bauer, SECRETARY Michael E. Arvin, TREASURER Terry Chapman Dale Marchino Steve Streepy MONTHLY MEETING
Tuesday, Jan. 26 7 p.m., Daviess-Martin REMC office BILL PAYMENT OPTIONS
Online bill payment Budget billing Auto bank draft Drive-through window Night depository Credit card payment (VISA, Discover and MasterCard accepted) Pay-by-phone MISSION STATEMENT
“Our mission is to provide safe, reliable electricity and quality services for our members at a reasonable cost.” Like us on Facebook www.Facebook.com/Daviess MartinCountyREMC
TIP OF THE MONTH
Need to supplement inadequate heating? Using small space heaters to heat one room can be less expensive to use than your central heating system. — ENERGY.GOV
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Looking forward to another great year By the time this is published, we will have said goodbye to 2015. The start of a new year is a good time for us to remember how much we have to be thankful for. Our families, friends, health DAVE SUTTER and wealth, along with the freedoms and services that we tend to take for granted, should all be on our list of thanks. While our lives may be far from perfect, we are truly living in a time and place where the potential exists for success. Looking ahead to 2016 should be both challenging and exciting. Here at your electric cooperative, we have an approved budget that will provide the foundation for our plans. We will say goodbye to some of our co-workers next year, who will be retiring after devoting a combined service of more than 124 years to your REMC. This will result in having new people in new roles and the learning curve that goes with such changes. We also will continue to review our programs, which we have offered in the past, to see if they are still adding value to you — our members. Our website will undergo a facelift, and we will continue to look for ways to improve our administrative service functions. Recently, we experienced a problem with our online billing and payment process. No customer information was compromised, and once it was determined that
the issue was with one of our vendors, the repairs were made. However, it did create some frustrations for those who were trying to use the system at the time when it was down. It is these systems (and others) that give us reason to pause and question just what services we are trying to provide and at what cost to maintain their functionality. In this case, we wish to apologize for any inconvenience and to thank those members for their patience as we worked through resolving the issue. Finally, in 2016, there will be ongoing regulatory pressure that has the potential to impact us all. Proposed legislation in areas such as the Waters of the United States (WOTUS) and the Clean Power Plan (CPP) represent a couple of examples where the federal government will be challenged for exercising some far-reaching authority. These and other politicallycharged topics will be shaped by the results of the 2016 election. Therefore, it will be important for all of us to pay attention to these and other issues and to vote in November. Our pledge will be the same as it has always been — to provide safe, reliable electric service at a reasonable cost. Thank you for the opportunity to serve your electrical needs and please have a safe and great start to your new year. … DAVE SUTTER is general manager of Daviess-Martin County REMC.
Credit card reminder Beginning Jan. 1, 2016, DMREMC employees will no longer be able to take credit or debit card payments over the phone or counter due to the enforcement of credit card regulations from the Payment Card Industry or PCI. You may make credit or debit card payments through our SmartHub app on our website or by calling our pay-by-phone number at 1-888-222-0624. You can find information on both payment options in Electric Consumer magazine or on our website at www.dmremc.com. Check and cash payments may be made by mail, over the counter or in the night deposit box. We do not recommend sending cash through the mail or night deposit box. We know this change may cause you some confusion at first, but this will make the REMC compliant with credit card regulations. We thank you for your patience and appreciate your understanding of this change.
ELECTRIC CONSUMER • JANUARY 2016 • ElectricConsumer.org
IVE Stay safe all year long with these home safety tips When a light goes out, it’s hard not to notice the bulb needs to be replaced (unless you like to stay in the dark). But how can you tell if your power outlets are working properly? You don’t want an electrical fire to serve as your wake-up call that something is amiss. The Electrical Safety Foundation International provides a home safety calendar (right) to help you remember when to perform routine maintenance and safety checks. Some things, like vacuuming coils and changing furnace or air conditioning filters, should be done every three months. Other items, like testing GFCI outlets and smoke alarms, need to happen monthly. Taking care of these safety items on the first of the month when you’re paying bills is a great time to knock a few things off the list.
Wholesale tracker change
‘Win! Win! Win!’
Reflected on bills received in February, Daviess-Martin County REMC members will see a change in the wholesale power tracker adjustment effective Jan. 1. Hoosier Energy has changed the power tracker from $2.76 per 1,000 kWh used to $2.18 per 1,000 kWh used.
Each month, Daviess-Martin County REMC asks our readers three questions to which the answers can be found in the articles of Electric Consumer. Follow these simple rules: 1.) Clip the coupon along the dotted line. 2.) Fill it out. 3.) Return it to our office with your monthly payment before the 20th of the month. (Delinquent payments are not eligible.) Each month, a winner will be drawn from the entries submitted. Make sure you bring or mail in your most recent coupon, as the coupons are dated monthly. Members with automatic payment accounts will be entered in the contest as well. Copies will not be accepted, and coupons are not available at the office! Winners will be notified and their names will be published in the following monthly issue of Electric Consumer.
Nominate directors for elections at annual meeting Mark your calendar for the Daviess-Martin County REMC annual meeting on April 7. The meeting will be held at Shoals High School, 7900 U.S. Highway 50, Shoals. Registration will run from 5:30 p.m. until the start of the 7 p.m. business meeting. Business meeting action items will include: k The election of two directors for the cooperative to serve a term of three years. Districts up for election include District I (Elmore, Madison, Steele and Bogard townships in Daviess County) and District IV (Harrison and Reeve townships in Daviess County). k Approval of reports for the previous fiscal year. k Transacting such other business as may come before the meeting. In accordance with our bylaws, nominations for members to become a director on the REMC board shall be made by petition. Valid nominating petitions must be submitted to the REMC no later than Feb. 22. Interested parties should contact Theresa Showalter at the REMC office during normal business hours Monday through Friday, 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. for petition details and to request an informational packet.
NOVEMBER WINNER: Quintin Myers, Loogootee
$50 MONTHLY DRAWING (FOR BILLS DATED JAN. 5; PAID BY JAN. 20)
1.
Valid nomination petitions to become a director on the REMC board must be submitted to the REMC no later than ________________________________________________ .
2.
“Our mission is to provide ______________________ , reliable electricity and quality services for our members at a reasonable cost.”
3. What is the Daviess-Martin County REMC pay-by-phone number? ________________________________________
NAME: ADDRESS: ACCOUNT NO.: PHONE NO.:
ElectricConsumer.org • JANUARY 2016 • ELECTRIC CONSUMER 5
Daviess-Martin County REMC News
2016 Camp dates
WE’RE LOOKING FOR YOU
JUNE 8-11
AT TOUCHSTONE ENERGY CAMP A fun, powerful and unique camp experience designed for students entering seventh grade in 2016.
TO WASHINGTON, D.C.
JUNE 9-16, 2016
» » » » » »
APPLY NOW
FOR THIS ALL-INCLUSIVE
TRIP OF A LIFETIME TO WASHINGTON, D.C. FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT:
READY TO APPLY FOR CAMP? For more information about attending camp this summer, please contact: JANET CHESTNUT 812.295.4200 jchestnut@dmremc.com
JANET CHESTNUT 812.295.4200 Daviess-Martin County REMC
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horseback riding canoeing zip lining trying out archery swimming learning about electrical safety » and even taking bucket truck rides!
ELECTRIC CONSUMER • JANUARY 2016 • ElectricConsumer.org
Daviess-Martin County REMC
Congratulations to our annual report photo contest winners! Daviess-Martin County REMC is excited to announce the winners of its ninth annual report cover photo contest. We would like to thank all of our members who entered photos. The response was great, which made choosing the winning photos a difficult task.
SPEND A DAY in the INDIANA LEGISLATURE WITH STUDENTS FROM REMCS AROUND THE STATE
JANUARY
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ËSee the legislature in action! ËObserve policy debates. ËAssist legislators during session. ËTour the governor’s office and statehouse.
The photo of a winter sunset taken by Marie Hawkins of Shoals was the $50 first place winner. It will be printed as the cover of the 2015 annual report to be distributed at the 2016 Daviess-Martin County REMC annual meeting held on April 7 at the Shoals High School Gymnasium.
HOW TO APPLY 1. Visit IGA.IN.GOV/legislative/find-legislators to find your state legislator. 2. Visit bit.ly/1DNAJQE to apply. 3. Submit your application.
REQUIREMENTS You must be available on January 25 and have reliable transportation to and from the Indiana Statehouse that day. The program is open to students aged 13–18. Please confirm with school administrators, but Page Day is considered an excused absence in most instances.
APPLY BY JANUARY
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The photo of a weathered birdhouse taken Frank and Elke Guratzsch of Washington by Jamie K. Wagler of Plainville was the were the $25 third place winners with a $25 second place winner. photo of their grandchildren visiting from Chicago and Trinidad. Elliott and Evan Holubetz and Clara Guratzsch showed that the corn in Indiana was knee high by the Fourth of July.
ElectricConsumer.org • JANUARY 2016 • ELECTRIC CONSUMER 29