News and Events

Happy 75th AMEC
January 31, 2012

 

by Barry Hart

When the early pioneers began establishing electric co-ops in Missouri, they were in the dark, both literally and figuratively. Their efforts were intended to bring electric lights to a group of people who were struggling to improve their quality of life, even after the experts said it was impossible. At the same time, they were in the dark on how to accomplish this mighty task but were determined to make it happen for their friends and neighbors.

These were not highly educated businessmen skilled in the ways of operating what would soon become a big business. For the most part, they were humble farmers and ranchers, savvy at pricing cattle and planting crops, but unsure how to negotiate a wholesale power contract.

Even though they were making progress, many false starts were made, until a group of like-minded individuals concluded there might be some benefit in an organization where ideas and solutions to common problems could be shared. Led by a true champion of Missouri’s rural electrification program, attorney Fenton Stockard, a small group of men representing eight electric cooperatives gathered
in Columbia on Feb. 11, 1937. Read the Full Article



Ensuring Your Voices are Heard
December 27, 2011

 

by Barry Hart

This month, Jefferson City looks forward to the 2012 legislative session getting underway at the state Capitol. I’ll be one of the many carefully watching what takes place at the statehouse. 

One of the most important roles for the Association of Missouri Electric Cooperatives is to represent electric cooperative members at the Capitol. Our purpose is to keep tabs on any legislation that could adversely affect rural people and to propose new legislation that will be beneficial.

Our efforts are guided here in Missouri by a Legislative Committee composed of managers and directors from electric cooperatives around the state. This ensures we have input from the various state regions and oversight from the grassroots.

The people on this committee, and others from neighboring electric cooperatives who provide input, have the pulse of the state’s rural areas. They know the issues that are important to their members, and they certainly let us know what these are...  READ MORE



State Legislative Conference set for Jan. 30-31
December 21, 2011

 

AMEC's 6th-annual State Legislative Conference is set for Jan. 30-31 at the Capitol Plaza Hotel in Jefferson City. All cooperative managers, board members, staff, Grassroots Coordinators and member-owners are invited to attend with a registration fee of only $300 per cooperative. If you plan to stay at the Capitol Plaza, hotel reservations can be made before the cutoff date of Jan. 13th by calling 573-635-1234 and requesting the AMEC room block ($83 for standard rooms). Please contact Chris Weber via email or call 573-659-3415 for futrther details. 



Counting my Blessings
December 1, 2011
by Barry Hart

 

In December, things slow down enough for me to take a look back on the past year. Whenever I do, I count my blessings because no matter how difficult things are for me, I know there are always others who are in much worse circumstances.

What stood out to me the most in 2011 was how people came together to help one another during trying circumstances. The first example of this came in the winter when a heavy snowstorm, dubbed “Snowpocalypse,” shut down the state.

While snow doesn’t cause as many power outages as ice, there were a good number of outages in the affected area. Line crews from Co-Mo Electric Cooperative based in Tipton found their trucks unable to move in the heavy snow. But they were able to restore service thanks to farmers who towed them behind massive tractors.

In May, Joplin was devastated by one of the worst tornadoes to hit Missouri. As news of the tragedy spread, people from all over the state and nation offered their time and treasures to help Joplin get back on its feet. Gov. Jay Nixon told me that unlike other major disasters in the U.S., residents of Joplin have not left and are committed to rebuilding. I will keep you updated on the rebuild efforts and let you know how we can help.

We featured one group of kids in our October issue who raised money to help pets left homeless by the storm. Employees of electric co-ops dug deep to assist fellow employees at New-Mac Electric and KAMO Power who lost homes in the disaster.

Closer to home, we have two employees at the Association of Missouri Electric Cooperatives who are either battling cancer personally or are helping loved ones fight this disease. I was inspired to see how everyone at our office pitched in financially and emotionally to help them cope. It’s encouraging to see fundraising efforts locally, in the state and nation to find a cure for cancer. They tell me the battle is easier when you know you aren’t alone. As I travel and stop for gas, I often see coffee cans on the counter asking for donations to assist someone in need. Seems to me these cans are always full.

This fall we had an opportunity to come together to support a cause that was a lot less heartwrenching. I’m talking about the Cardinals’ unlikely World Series Championship.

If you weren’t a Cardinals fan when the regular season ended, you most likely were before the dramatic game 7 came to an end with the Redbirds on top. Everyone likes to root for the underdog. It’s hard to imagine it’s been more than 25 years since the I-70 World Series between the Royals and Cardinals, and many of us hope to see that happen again.

As I look toward 2012, I am reminded that this will be the 75th anniversary of this association. It was formed in 1937 to help electric co-ops do the things they couldn’t do on their own. By working together the way neighbors in rural areas have always done, they achieved great things despite the warnings of skeptics who said it couldn’t be done.

May you all have a blessed Christmas, and all the best in the coming year. It’s been a pleasure visiting with you in 2011, and I look forward to continuing this dialog. Even though we face challenges every day to ourselves, our families and our friends, we can all be thankful for our electric cooperatives’ commitment to community and the members they serve. We will do our best to keep you informed of the challenges facing your electric cooperative in the future.
 

This article appears in 
the December 2011 issue of Rural Missouri
and is published by
The Association of Missouri
Electric Cooperatives
 


A Solution for Energy Independence
November 1, 2011

A Solution for Energy Independence

by Barry Hart

These days, it’s hard to get Republicans and Democrats on the same page about anything. But there are a few common denominators on which everyone can agree. One of these is that our nation needs more jobs. The other is that gas prices are too high.

I believe there is a common solution to both of these challenges: ethanol. Made right here in Missouri, from corn produced by electric co-op members, ethanol offers an opportunity to add tremendous value to agriculture.

Ethanol production has generated good jobs in places that desperately need them. It has spurred economic activity in transportation and construction. Most importantly, it has provided hope for rural youth who might otherwise look to urban areas for employment.

Nationally, the industry in 2010 contributed $53.6 billion to the economy, generated $8.6 billion in federal tax revenue and supported more than 400,000 jobs, according to the trade group Growth Energy.

But that’s just a start. In the October Rural Missouri, we told you about new blender pumps that are being installed around the state. Missouri leads the nation in grant applications for the installation of these pumps, which offer consumers with flex-fuel vehicles more choices in the ratio of gas to ethanol in fuel, and more choices for reducing our dependence on foreign oil.

One of the first blender pump installations was at Platte-Clay Fuels in Kearney, owned by the electric cooperative that serves north of Kansas City. While fuel prices vary, Platte-Clay was selling the highest blend of fuel, E85, 40 cents per gallon cheaper than other fuels when the blender pump first opened in August.

Those flex-fuel pumps let motorists choose their fuel, instead of having their choice made for them. Consumers can choose from five blends, from 10 percent ethanol to 85 percent ethanol. Besides saving money on each fill-up — because ethanol reduces fuel prices — they can experiment to find the best blend to improve mileage. Many find that E30 is the best option in today’s cars.

Platte-Clay’s blender pumps and others like it in Missouri were made possible by grants from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Rural Development Program. Administrator Judith Canales came to Missouri in April to announce the program. She was back just three months later to see it bear fruit.

She pointed out that every year, the United States pays $300 billion for oil to foreign countries, including many that are not friendly to Americans. She said the more oil we can replace with ethanol, the more we reduce the role foreign oil plays in our economy.

Ethanol is better for the environment, too. These higher blends will help to significantly reduce both fine particulate and greenhouse gas emissions from tailpipes.
It’s time to invest in homegrown, renewable energy that will put Americans back to work and reduce our dependence on hostile governments. Our nation has a national security goal of producing 36 billion gallons of biofuel per year by 2022.

If you own a flex-fuel vehicle, you can help make this possible by using higher blends of ethanol in your vehicle. There are nearly 10 million of these vehicles on the road, with another million added every year.

Ethanol has the potential to replace foreign oil for transportation in our country. It’s more than a fuel — it’s a solution to a lot of problems we face.
You can learn more about ethanol at www.drivingethanol.org or watch the new movie “Freedom” available at www.thefreedomfilm.com.

This article appears in 
the November 2011 issue of Rural Missouri
and is published by
The Association of Missouri
Electric Cooperatives