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York Electric Cooperative, Inc.

Events

Help YEC celebrate 80 years!

Save the date for Saturday, May 8, 2021, to help your co-op celebrate 80 years of providing affordable, safe reliable service for you—our valuable members! Look for more information about our Annual Meeting in upcoming issues of South Carolina Living.

2019 Financial Statement

Financial health is important at YEC. Download our 2019 audited financial statement or contact our member services department at (803) 684-4248.

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[PDF] 2019 Financial Report

1 MB 51 downloads

 

Bylaw excerpt–Article IV Trustees, Section 4.06 Nominations

Not less than ninety (90) days prior to the meeting, nominations may be made by twenty-five (25) or more Members of the Cooperative in writing over their signatures on an explicit petition document listing their nominee(s) in like manner. This document must be obtained from the Cooperative no more than one hundred twenty (120) days prior to the Annual Meeting and must be specific to each Trustee District. In addition to the required petition, candidates must attend a Board-developed educational program on Cooperative history, operations and governance not less than sixty (60) days prior to the next Annual Meeting, or have a minimum of three (3) years of service as an electric cooperative Trustee. The educational requirement will be offered at the Cooperative on two (2) specified dates prior to the Annual Meeting. The Secretary shall mail to the Members with the notice of the meeting, or separately, but at least thirty (30) days, but not more than forty-five (45) days prior to the date of the meeting, a complete statement of the names and addresses of all nominees for each Trustee District from or with respect to which one (1)or more Trustees must be elected, showing clearly those who have completed the educational requirement and those who have completed a minimum of three (3) years of service as an electric cooperative Trustee. The Secretary shall post in like manner such nominations at the Cooperative offices at least forty-five (45) days prior to the next Annual Meeting.

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[PDF] YEC Bylaws

427 KB 690 downloads

 

Statement of Nondiscrimination

In accordance with Federal civil rights law and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) civil rights regulations and policies, the USDA, its Agencies, offices, and employees, and institutions participating in or administering USDA programs are prohibited from discriminating based on race, color, national origin, religion, sex, gender identity (including gender expression), sexual orientation, disability, age, marital status, family/ parental status, income derived from a public assistance program, political beliefs, or reprisal or retaliation for prior civil rights activity, in any program or activity conducted or funded by USDA (not all bases apply to all programs). Remedies and complaint filing deadlines vary by program or incident.

Persons with disabilities who require alternative means of communication for program information (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, American Sign Language, etc.) should contact the responsible Agency or USDA’s TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice and TTY) or contact USDA through the Federal Relay Service at (800) 877-8339. Additionally, program information may be made available in languages other than English.

To file a program discrimination complaint, complete the USDA Program Discrimination Complaint Form, AD-3027 found here and at any USDA office or write a letter addressed to USDA and provide in the letter all of the information requested in the form. To request a copy of the complaint form, call (866) 632-9992. Submit your completed form or letter to USDA by:

  1. Mail: U.S. Department of Agriculture Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights 1400 Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, D.C. 20250-9410;
  2. Fax: (202) 690-7442; or
  3. . This institution is an equal opportunity provider.

You’re the MVP

For nearly ten years, York Electric has been able to keep rates flat for members. We’ve worked hard to invest wisely in the future of your cooperative, maintaining financial stability so that outside factors don’t impact your monthly rates. We consider this success a joint effort because you’ve also played an integral role in keeping power affordable with programs like Beat The Peak.

Since we started Beat The Peak in 2018, South Carolina cooperative members have collectively helped their co-ops save $618,195 in power costs. This effort not only helps reduce the need to build additional power generation facilities, but also helps maintain low rates. When electricity’s demand is the highest, or when the most people are using the most power, generation of electricity costs more. Think about driving your car. Putting your car in motion from a stoplight or going uphill requires more power from your engine, which uses more gas. Helping your co-op offset the predicted peak times is like coasting downhill, increasing your miles per gallon and saving your co-op money. Just by simply receiving an alert when YEC predicts a peak in demand to occur and offsetting your power use by adjusting your thermostat or waiting to do household chores really makes a difference.

Choose When You Use Electricity


 
To date, York Electric has 6,535 members signed up for Beat The Peak alerts, resulting in an overall savings of $105,325 just for our co-op. The more members who are consciously shifting their electric use, the more impact we can have on keeping power costs low. Similarly, we have 292 members participating in our new smart thermostat program. As an addition to the Beat The Peak program, members who sign up and install an ecobee smart thermostat will automatically have their thermostat adjusted to accommodate for predicted peak energy use times. The best part is, we automatically pre-cool your house in the summer and pre-warm your house in the winter so that you don’t feel any discomfort.

With the help of technology, we’re looking out for you and keeping your bottom line a priority. Sign up for peak alerts at BeatthePeak.com and purchase a smart thermostat from YEC here. Together, we can be the winning team. Thanks for being the most valuable players and holding down power costs.

Sincerely,

Paul Basha, CEO, York Electric Cooperative

Paul Basha

Paul Basha
President and Chief Executive Officer

York Electric Cooperative cancels Annual Meeting

As the COVID-19 pandemic continues, the York Electric Cooperative Board of Directors and management team has decided to cancel the 2020 Annual Meeting of Members. Please save the date for our 2021 Annual Meeting on Saturday, May 8.

To continue prioritizing the health and safety of our members and employees, York Electric Cooperative also will not host the following community events:

  • Member Appreciation Shred Day
  • Member Advisory Committee Meeting

Additionally, we will modify our annual Veterans Day Celebration on Tuesday, Nov. 11, 2020. Look for details regarding this event in the November/December edition of South Carolina Living magazine.

Doing well by doing good

Although our board of directors deemed it unsafe to host our annual meeting this month, I still have positive updates to share. As we continue monitoring the COVID-19 pandemic, we will communicate plans for our annual meeting to all of you, including voting on your trustees, bylaw amendments and single-member districts. For now, I bring you the good news in print until it is safe to be together in person.

Asplundh tree crews
Asplundh tree crews continue to maintain right of way across YEC’s territory. Keeping trees and brush clear from the line not only improves your reliability, but it also helps crews reach equipment during an outage for quick repairs. ERIN POWELL

Your co-op is in great shape

We were able to retire the largest amount of capital credits at one time in our history to you in April 2020. Members received refunds totaling $2 million and, hopefully, this money came at a time when extra cash was needed most. The co-ops of South Carolina are working together to make sure the Santee Cooper deal is the best it can be for our members. We will not have a rate increase in 2020, and we do not plan to see one within the next two years.

New services provide benefits

As promised, we have continued working to find a way to bring high-speed internet to the unserved and underserved areas of our territory. We know this is key to keeping everyone connected to the world, and we want to do our part to help. We’ve also rolled out new energy services programs, offering technology at a lower cost for you. Learn more about the benefits of our whole house generator program and ecobee smart thermostat programs. Lastly, and perhaps most importantly, we are always looking out for you and researching new ways to enrich our communities and improve the quality of life in our area. Because of you, we have been able to give $3 million back to help those in need through our Operation Round Up program. We have also continued to be a vital part of economic development efforts in our area so that our members have more job opportunities.

YEC's CEO, Paul Basha
Paul Basha

I say all of this with gratitude for our membership, our communities and our employees. Local men and women here at YEC care about you and your families. Their dedication and determination to serve you is why we were able to respond to 99.75% of outages in 2019 within an hour of the first report, no matter the weather conditions or time of day.

These are just a few ways YEC continues to prove that we have your back and will always set the bar high to deliver reliable, affordable electricity to you. Thank you for another great year!

Sincerely,

Paul Basha

Paul Basha
President and Chief Executive Officer

We’re suspending your annual meeting

A hearty handshake. A slap on the shoulder. Maybe even a warm hug. You don’t usually associate these types of behaviors with a business meeting. That is, unless you’re talking about York Electric Cooperative’s Annual Meeting. It’s what makes us different bringing members, employees, trustees and our community together to engage with one another and participate in the business of their cooperative. Having such an event has always been an important part of serving you and thanking you for your membership.

YEC Staff at Annual Meeting
When it comes to Annual Meetings, the YEC team is one well-rehearsed ensemble. Porter Gable

Unfortunately, right now, the very things that make our annual meeting so special create an even greater risk to the communities we serve. York Electric’s 2020 Annual Meeting of Members is suspended to prevent further spreading of the coronavirus.

Although unprecedented, this decision by your board of trustees is consistent with York Electric always putting safety first. The trustee election, bylaw changes and cooperative business that needed to be done on May 9, 2020 can be accomplished at a time when it’s safer for us to be together again.

As you may know, these annual meetings are part of cooperatives’ DNA and are required to happen as written into our bylaws. But a pandemic has no use for bylaws. Statutes and regulations don’t make sense if following them is harmful for the people those rules are meant to protect. For example, YEC has limited personal contact with members, suspended account disconnections, increased social distancing for meetings, and increased employee communications detailing the signs of COVID-19 and guidelines to help prevent spreading germs in the office.

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[PDF] 2020 Proposed bylaw changes

5 MB 63 downloads

 

Although it has not been necessary yet, York Electric may adjust its office hours or even temporarily close. We strongly encourage you to visit this webpage, follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, or just simply call our member services team at (803) 684-4248 to receive the latest information on how our services have changed.

In the meantime, we’re doing everything we can to prevent the spread of the virus. Our offices are routinely cleaned and disinfected. Our employees, especially those who interact with the public, adhere to strict personal hygiene guidelines and have been instructed to stay home if they are feverish or do not feel well.

As you practice social distancing or self-isolation, let me remind you of our remote account management services. With YEC’s Member Portal, you can pay your bill, create a payment arrangement, request service orders, or report an outage on your desktop computer or using our mobile app. Our free YEC Mobile App also provides these services, along with our opt-in texting at 352667. If you haven’t already, now is a good time to take advantage of them. Please call us if you need assistance.

YEC's CEO, Paul BashaYEC is always looking out for you, so I remind you all to stay in safe spaces, practice healthy habits and stay informed. We want to help you and our community stay well.

Sincerely,

Paul Basha

Paul Basha
President and Chief Executive Officer

Members to decide on single member district voting

The South Carolina General Assembly has passed a new law requiring cooperative members to consider single-member voting districts. Members will decide in a referendum at York Electric’s Annual Meeting.

Important Update: 
The York Electric Cooperative Board of Directors voted to suspend the 79th Annual Meeting because of the coronavirus pandemic. Voting on the proposed bylaw changes and single-member district voting will take place at a later date.   

YEC Members to decide on single member district voting

Explanation

York Electric Cooperative is divided into nine (9) districts, and each district is represented by one Trustee on the board. This structure ensures that our entire service territory is represented. Currently, you can vote in every district election, regardless of where you live. However, if the Cooperative adopts single-member voting districts, you would only be allowed to vote for a board candidate who lives in the district where you live. That election would occur every third year.

Question

Would you like to continue to be able to vote every year for every seat on the Board up for election?

____ YES: “I want the opportunity to keep voting for every seat on the Board every year.”

____ NO: “I only want the authority to vote for candidates in my own district every third year.”

Proposed bylaw changes for York Electric

York Electric Cooperative encourages members to review the proposed bylaw changes that will be voted on at the Annual Meeting of Members. The full document showing these material changes, along with some additional typographical corrections, is available for download here.

 

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[PDF] 2020 Proposed bylaw changes

1 file(s) 5 MB
Download PDF

Annual Meeting Suspended

Important Update: 
YEC’s 79th Annual Meeting has been suspended. Be sure to look for more information on our website, South Carolina Living magazine, and on social media in the upcoming months.   

 

Community-minded, member-dedicated.

Celebrate our great community with York Electric at our 79th Annual Business Meeting for members on Saturday, May 9, 2020. We have been hard at work planning a fun-filled day, including a children’s zone, live music, food vendors and more. In a few months, we will be publishing proposed amendments to our current bylaws that will need to be approved by the membership, as well as more details about the meeting. Members who register will receive a $20 bill credit and will be entered to win door and grand prizes. Please review the Annual Meeting bylaw excerpts pertaining to nominations of trustees included in this issue. As a member, you are the most important part of YEC, and your input is essential. Thank you for being members of YEC. We look forward to spending the day with you and celebrating our 79th year of serving you and our community!

 

2018 Financial Statement

Financial Health is important at YEC. To review a copy of our 2018 audited financial statement, download a copy or contact our member services department at (803) 684-4248.

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[PDF] 2018 Financial Report

170 KB 52 downloads

 

Bylaw excerpt–Article IV Trustees, Section 4.06 Nominations:

Not less than ninety (90) days prior to the meeting, nominations may be made by twenty-five (25) or more members of the Cooperative in writing over their signatures on an explicit petition document listing their nominee(s) in like manner. This document must be obtained from the Cooperative no more than one hundred twenty (120) days prior to the Annual Meeting and must be specific to each district. In addition to the required petition, candidates must attend a Board-developed educational program on Cooperative history, operations and governance not less than sixty (60) days prior to the next Annual Meeting, or have a minimum of three (3) years of service as an electric cooperative Trustee. The educational requirement will be offered at the Cooperative on two (2) specified dates prior to the Annual Meeting. The Secretary shall mail to the members with the notice of the meeting, or separately, but at least ten (10) days prior to the date of the meeting, a complete statement of the names and addresses of all nominees for each Trustee District from or with respect to which one or more Trustees must be elected, showing clearly those who have completed the educational requirement and those who have completed a minimum of three years of service as an electric cooperative Trustee. The Secretary shall post in like manner such nominations at the Cooperative offices sixty (60) days prior to the next Annual Meeting.

Statement of Nondiscrimination