FORMEMBERSOF FIRSTELECTRICCOOPERATIVE
Thefollowinginformationsummarizesthe rightsandobligationsofFirstElectric Cooperative CorporationanditsMembersassetforthintheRules andRegulations GoverningUtility ServiceadoptedbytheArkansasPublic ServiceCommission.
ELECTRICSERVICERATES:
AllratesforserviceareonfilewiththeArkansas PublicService Commissionandare availabletoourMembersonrequestatourbusinessofficesMondaythroughFridayfrom8 a.m.to5p.m.atJacksonville,Bryant,HeberSprings,PerryvilleandStuttgart.Themonthly residentialratesasofMay1,2024,areasfollows:
PeakMonths Rate Off-PeakMonths Rate
$28.00plus $28.00plus 12.264¢perkWh
12.264¢perkWhforthe first500kWh, 10.764¢perkWhforalladditionalkWh $31.00MinimumBill $31.00MinimumBill
PeakMonthsRatewillapplytokilowatthoursbilledduringthe monthsofJunethrough October.Off-PeakMonthsRate willapplytokilowatthoursbilledduringthe monthsof NovemberthroughMay.
ADJUSTMENTS:
Billingforelectricserviceunderbasicrates issubjecttothe followingadjustments:
1. EnergyCostAdjustment:Ifthecostofenergy totheCooperativechanges from the basecostof0.060979¢perkilowatthoursoldembeddedinthe Cooperative’s rate,theCooperativeshallincrease ordecreaseitsratesbyanamountsufficient tocompensate forthechange.
2. TaxAdjustment:Thisadjustmentshallapplytoanyexcise,license, privilege orfranchise taxeswhichtheCooperative mayhereafterhavetopay,whichare leviedorimposed,orincreasedordecreasedbylawsorordinances ofany municipaltaxingauthority.Suchadjustmentsshallberecoveredonlyfromthose Memberswithinjurisdictionalboundariesofthe taxingbodiesandshallbe shownonthefaceofthebill.
3. CostofDebtAdjustment:Ifthe totalcostofdebttothe Cooperative exceedstheamountembeddedinthe Cooperative’sbaserates,thenthe Cooperative shallincreaseordecrease itsretailratesbyanamountsufficientto compensate forthechanges.
CANCELLINGSERVICE:
AMemberwhowantstocancelservice mustinformthe utilityatleast5daysbefore the requesteddisconnectiondate.Afinalbillwillbe processedatthenextbillingdate.Service maybediscontinuedeight(8)days afterthedaya“shutoff”noticeismailed.
Suspensionsofservicemaybedelayedwhena“SeriousMedicalCondition”existsor whena“DelayedPaymentAgreement”or“PaymentExtension” hasbeenenteredintowith the Cooperative.These optionsareavailablethrougharrangementswiththeCooperative’s officesatJacksonville,Bryant,HeberSprings,Perryville andStuttgart.
Whenservice hasbeendiscontinued,the Cooperativewillreconnectservice assoonasthe reasonforthediscontinuationofservicehasbeenresolved.Ifthe reasonforthe termination ofservice wastheunlawfulorunauthorizeduseofthe service,the Cooperative maydiscontinueservicewithoutnotice.The Cooperativemay,priortoreconnectingservice,requirea reasonablepaymentofestimatedservicerenderedormayrefusetoreconnectserviceuntil orderedbytheCommission.Anaccount,whichhasbeensuspendedfornon-payment,willnot be closeduntilthe Memberhasbeengiven7calendardaystohaveservice reconnected.
PAYMENTARRANGEMENTS:
Ifyouareunabletopaya billinfull,youmay,ifqualified, be enteredintoa delayedPaymentArrangementandtheCooperative willnotdiscontinue service if:
1. Youpayatleast¼ ofyourbill;and
2. Youagreetopaythe balanceofyourbillinreasonableinstallmentsovera period of3months;and
3. Youagreetopayinfullallfuturebillsduringthe periodofthe agreementbythe due date.
Inarrangingtheinstallmentpaymentagreement,theCooperative willconsiderthe Member’sabilitytopay,thesize ofthe unpaidaccount, theMember’s paymenthistory, andthelengthoftimeandreasonsaccounthasnotbeenpaid. Failuretocomplywiththese arrangements willvoidtheagreementandwillresultin the terminationofelectric service withoutadditionalnotice.Ifelectricservice isterminated,the entireamountpastduewillbe requiredforcontinuationofservice.
IftheCooperative billsaMemberforanamounttocorrectapreviousunder-billing,the Memberis permittedtopaythatamountpursuanttoadelayedpaymentarrangementthatprovidesforrepaymentovera periodequaltotheperiodduringwhichtheunder-billingoccurred. Iftheunder-billingis thefaultoftheCooperative oritisimpossible todetermine whetherthe previousunder-billingisthe faultoftheCooperative ortheMember,theCooperative willnot imposea finance charge onthedelayedpayment.
SERIOUSMEDICALCONDITION
TheCooperative willpostponethediscontinuationofservice toa residentialMember,if the Memberpresents acertificate fromaphysicianstatingthatdiscontinuationofservice will aggravateanexistingmedicalemergencyofthe Member,a memberoftheMember’s family, orotherpermanentresidentofthe premises whereserviceisrendered.Thecontentsofthe certificate must:
• Identifytheseriousmedicalcondition;
• Specifythe effectofdiscontinuationofservice;
• Specifythe time duringwhichdiscontinuationofservicewillaggravate the seriousmedicalcondition.
Memberswhoare65orolderorwhohavea disabilityareentitledtoreceive thefollowing specialattentionandtreatment:
1. WhenanidentifiedMemberwhois65orolderorwhohasa disabilityisunable to paytheirbillontime,theCooperative willarrangeadelayedpaymentagreementor provide the namesofFederal,State,andlocalbillpaymentassistance agencies.
2.Service tothesequalifiedMemberswillnotbe disconnectedonadaywhenthe NationalWeatherServiceforecastsa maximumtemperatureof95degrees orhigher.
3.Atleast72hourspriortoanyproposeddisconnectionofelectric service toa qualifiedMember,FirstElectric Cooperativewillattempttocontact,inpersonorby telephone,the Memberora personlivinginthehousehold.Thepersonalcontactisto givenoticeofthependingterminationandtoexplainthestepstheMembercantake toavoidterminationofservice.Atleasttwocontactattemptswillbe madeduringor outsidenormalworkinghours-
•Toqualifyasanindividualwitha disability,apersonmustbe aresidential Memberwhohasapermanentseverephysicalormentalimpairmentwhich substantiallylimitshis/herabilitytopaytheelectric bill,and,whois certifiedas beingphysicallyormentallydisabledbya physicianorotherqualifiedperson, agencyororganization.
•Toreceivethespecialattentionandtreatmenttowhichtheyareentitled, qualifiedMembers mustidentifythemselvesandregisterwithFirstElectric Cooperative.Aregistrationformmaybeobtainedbyapersonalvisitortele phonecalltoaFirstElectric Cooperative office.
THIRDPARTYNOTICE:
Membershave therighttodesignatea thirdpartytobenotifiedbeforeFirstElectric Cooperativedisconnectselectric service.Thethirdpartysodesignatedwillhave the rightto receive andprovide informationaboutthe Member’scircumstances,butwillnotberesponsible forpaymentofthe bill.Thirdpartynotificationiscompletelyvoluntary.
SPECIALNOTIFICATIONTOLANDLORD/TENANTS:
Certainlandlords/tenantswillreceive specialconsiderationregardingthe“Shut-Off”of electricservice whenthe landlordreceiveslease orrentpaymentswhichinclude amountsfor electricutilityservice.
“Landlord”meansthe owner,agent,manager,orlessorofthepremises.Atenantis a personoccupyingthesepremises.Onceidentified,FirstElectricCooperativewillnotdisconnectelectric service tosuchlandlord/tenantfornon-paymentofthe billuntil:
1. Thetenant(s)havebeennotifiedthatelectric service issubjecttodisconnection; 2. Atleast30dayshave elapsedfromthedate the accountbecamedelinquentand, afterbeingnotifiedofthedelinquency,the tenanthasnotpaidforthe electricservice suppliedafterthe dateofnotificationormade arrangements withFirstElectric Cooperativetomake suchpayment;and
3. Wherefeasible,FirstElectric Cooperativewillofferthe tenantthe opportunityto applyforservice intheirownname.
FirstElectric Cooperativerequestsalllandlordswhoarepayingfortheelectricservice foratenant,andalltenantswhoselandlordispayingthe billfortheelectric service,to identifythemselvestothe Cooperative.
DEPOSITREQUIREMENTS: ForResidentialAccounts
only
Adepositmayberequiredfromnewapplicantsforservicetoguaranteepaymentforthe service.Ifdesired,thedepositmaybepaidintwoequalinstallments.Inlieuofa deposit, the Cooperativewillaccept:
•Satisfactorycreditcheck;
•Thewrittenguarantyofaresponsible thirdparty;
•Aletterverifyingcredithistoryfromprevious electric utilityshowinggood paymenthistory;
•IfyouandyourspouseareintheAirForce,amilitarywaivercanbeobtained.
Theamountofadepositwillnotexceedtheestimatedbillfortwoaveragebilling periods.Forunlawfulorunauthorizeduseofservice, theamountofdepositshallnot exceedtheestimatedbillforsixbillingperiodspluspotentialdamage toCooperative property.Interest,asdeterminedbytheArkansasPublicService Commissionon depositsiscreditedtoMember’saccounts inJanuaryfortheprecedingyear.Deposits canbeincreasedtothe maximumifanyofthefollowingconditionsoccurduringthe proceedingtwelve (12)months:
1.Service issuspendedforfailuretopay;orproceed
2.Two(2)insufficientfundchecks havebeenrenderedtothe Cooperative;or
3.TheMember’saccounthasbecomesubjecttodisconnecttwo(2)timesinthe lasttwelve (12)months.
AMembermaypayanadditionaldepositinequalinstallmentswiththe nextfour(4)bills. Whenfinaldiscontinuationofserviceismade bythe Cooperative,the amountofthe deposit,plusaccruedinterestwillbe creditedtothe Member’saccount.AdepositshallautomaticallybecreditedtotheMember’s accountifaMemberhasforaconsecutive twelve(12) months’periodpaidallbillspriortothe duedateandrenderednocheckthatwasdishonored forreasonsotherthanbankerror.
HOWTOREADYOURMETER:
FirstElectric Cooperativeencouragesmemberstoreadtheirmeters. FirstElectricCooperativeusesa kilowatt-hourtype meterinwhichnumbersappearinawindow onthe faceof the meter.Toreadyourmeter,simplywrite downthe numbersintheordertheyappearinthe
Updated4/24
INFORMATION
window.
Tofindouthow manykilowatthoursofelectricityyouhave usedduringa periodoftime, subtractthemeterreadingatthestartofthe time period(usuallyone (1)monthprior)from the meterreadingattheendofthetimeperiod.Yourmonthlybillwillbebasedonreadings takenbyFirstElectricCooperative.
PROCEDURESTOAVOIDDISCONTINUATION OFSERVICEDURING
EXTENDED PERIOD OFABSENCE:
Ifyouwillbeabsentduringbillingperiodsandwishtoavoiddiscontinuationofservice the followingoptions areavailable.
FirstElectric Cooperativeoffersanautomaticdraftprogram,whichenables membersto have theirbankaccountorcreditcarddebitedeachmonthfortheamountoftheirelectric bill. Membersmaymake anadvancepaymentbasedonanaveragebillfortwelve(12)monthsor arrangetohavebillssenttoanalternate addressorthirdparty.Delayedpaymentarrangementsarealsoavailable.Fordetails,pleasecallyourlocalFirstElectricCooperativeoffice MondaythroughFridayfrom8a.m.to5p.m.
GENERALCHARGES:
• MembershipFee
• ServiceConnectionFee
• ReturnCheckFee
• MeterTestFee
• CollectionFee
• ReconnectionFee
• ReconnectionFeeAfterHours
• MemberAccountRecordStatementFee
• EnergyConsumptionStatementFee
$10.00
$25.00
$25.00
$50.00
$35.00
$65.00
$100.00
$0.00
$0.00
• ProcessingFeeforLevelizedBillingWithdrawal $0.00
• MeterReadingReportFee
• TripFee
• TripFee (afterhours)
LatePaymentCharge:
$0.00
$50.00
$75.00
Billsare renderedmonthlyandaredueandpayablewithin22calendardaysafterthe bill ismailed.Intheeventpaymentisnotmadewithin22daysafterthe datethebillismailed, the Cooperative shallcollectanadditional10%of thefirst$30.00ofthe billand2%ofthe remainingbalance asalatepaymentcharge.
DepositfromApplicantforNon-ResidentialService:
TheCooperative mayrequireadepositfroma non-residentialapplicantforservice. DepositfromApplicantforResidentialService:
TheCooperative mayrequireadepositfromanapplicantforresidentialserviceinaccordance withAPSCGeneralService Rule 4.01.A.
DepositfromLandlord:
TheCooperative mayrequireadepositwhenanapplicantforresidentialservicequalifies asa landlordasdefinedintheAPSCGeneralService Rules.Theamountofdepositwillequal the estimatedbillforthree(3)average billingperiods.
DepositDue toBankruptcy:
InaccordancewiththeUnitedStatesBankruptcyCode,U.S.C.S.Title 11§366,the CooperativemayrequireaMembertofurnishadequate assuranceofpaymentintheformofa depositorothersecurity.Thisdepositmaybeinadditiontoallotherdeposits postedwiththe Cooperativebeforethebankruptcyfiling.
DepositfromMember:
TheCooperative mayrequireanewdepositoranincrease intheamountofdepositfroma MemberinaccordancewithAPSCGeneralServiceRule4.02.
DUEDATECHANGES:
Membersmaychoosetohavetheiraccountmovedintoa differentbillingcycletochange the duedateoftheirmonthlybills.Pleasecontactanyofourofficestorequestthischange.
PAYMENTOPTIONS:
Membersmaypaytheirbillusinganyofthefollowingoptions–
•PayinpersonatanyFirstElectricoffice
•Paybyphone
•Payonlineatwww.firstelectric.coop
•Payusingthe freeFirstElectric mobileapp
•PayatanyPaysite Kiosklocation
•Paybyautomatic bankdraft
•Paybyautomatic creditcarddraft
•PaybyUSPSmailremittance
•PaybyMoneyGram
LEVELIZEDBILLINGPLAN:ForResidentialAccountsonly
TheMember’s monthlybillwillbe computedinaccordancewiththeapplicable rate schedule(s)andthe Member’saccountdebitedwithsuchamount.The netamountpayable for service forthecurrentmonthwillbe equal,tothe nearestwhole dollar,the averagemonthly amountdebitedtothe Member’saccountduringthe twelve monthsendingwiththe current monthplusorminusone-twelfthof theaccumulateddifferencebetweenpreviousdebitsand the amountspayableunderthisplan.
Wherethe Memberhaslessthantwelve monthsbillinghistoryatthispresentlocationor the billinghistoryisnotrepresentative,estimatesofmonthlybillsmaybe madesolelyfor determiningthecurrentmonth’s levelizedbilling.
TerminationandSettlement
Alevelizedbillingplanisnota delayedpaymentagreement.IfaMemberonalevelized billingplanbecomesdelinquent,autilitymayremovethe Memberfromthe levelizedbilling planand,iftheMemberqualifies, offerthe Memberadelayedpaymentagreement.
Billingunderthisplanmaybeautomaticallyterminatedupondisconnectionofservice. Anyamountsowedforservice billedunderthisplanshallbe dueas anyotherfinalbillfor service.Anyamountsoverpaidforservicebilledunderthisplanshallberefundedtothe Memberbycheck.
AMembermaywithdraw fromtheplanatanytime.Aprocessingfee maybe chargedifa Memberwithdrawsfromaplanmorethan1time in12months.The amountof theprocessing fee issetforthintheCooperative’stariffedscheduleofchargesrelatedtoMemberactivity.
WhenaMemberwithdrawsfromthe planbutdoes notdiscontinueservicewiththe Cooperative,theMemberwillhavetheoptionofpayingtheaccountbalance infull,or,if qualified,underadelayedpaymentagreement.Anyrefundduethe Membermaybe made bybillingcreditunless theMemberrequestsotherwise.Anyrefunddue the Membershallbe made within30days.
SALESTAXEXEMPTION:
In1983theArkansas LegislaturepassedAct120whichprovidesthatArkansas residents whose householdincomeislessthan$12,000annuallyareexemptfrompayingsalestaxon the first500kilowatthoursofelectricityusedeachmonth.Allchargesforelectricityused above 500kilowatthourspermonthwillbe taxed.
Inordertoqualifyfortheexemption,membersmustcompleteandfileanElectric Sales TaxExemptionformwithFirstElectric Cooperative.Ifyoufiledlastyearandfeelyouare stilleligible fortheexemptionthis year,youDONOThavetofileagaintocontinuereceiving the exemption.However,ifyouhave previouslyfiledwithFirstElectric Cooperativeforthis exemptionandyourannualincomehasincreasedover$12,000, youwillneedtocontactFirst Electric Cooperativesinceyouarenolongereligible.
These specialformsmaybeobtainedatanyofourbusinessofficesatJacksonville,Bryant, HeberSprings, Perryville,andStuttgartorfromyourlocalcountyCommissionerof Revenues.ThecompletedexemptionformmustbereceivedbyMarch1stofeachyear
MEMBER INQUIRIES:
AMembermayverifytheaccuracyofa billbycontactinganyofourlocalbusiness offices.OurrepresentativesaretrainedtohandleMember inquiriespromptly.Pleasecontact ourMemberservicerepresentativeandstateyourcomplaint.Wewelcomeyoursuggestions forresolvingcomplaints.Writedownthenameofthepersontowhomyoutalked. Ifyour complaintisnothandledtoyoursatisfaction,youmayappealtothe servicerepresentative’s supervisor.Theaddressandtelephone numberofthe Cooperative’sofficeswhereinquiries maybemade areasfollows:
Hours: Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
1000SouthJPWrightLoopRd Jacksonville,AR72076
3230MarketPlaceAvenue,Suite 1 Bryant,AR72022
150IndustrialParkRoad HeberSprings,AR72543
801SouthFourcheAvenue Perryville,AR72126
1824SouthMainStreet Stuttgart,AR72160
www.firstelectric.coop
Forgeneralinquiries,call800-489-7405
Toreportapoweroutage,call888-827-3322. Tomakeapayment,call844-PAY-FECC(844-729-3322).
Ifyouaredissatisfiedwiththeresultsofyourcomplaint,youmaycontacttheArkansas Public ServiceCommission.The mailingandstreetaddress is1000CenterSt.;P.O.Box C-400,Little Rock,AR72203.The toll-freenumberis 1-800-482-1164.InLittle Rock,call 501-682-1718.
TheArkansasPublic ServiceCommissionGeneralServiceRulesandSpecialRules -Electricity,are ondisplayandavailableateachofourlocaloffices.Thisinformation hasbeenprovidedbyFirstElectric Cooperative incompliance withtheArkansasPublic ServiceCommission.