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  1. It's all you
  2. Ownership

You own us!

You own us!

Electric cooperatives are not like other utilities. You, our member, own a portion of the business. Many people associate ownership with money; and that is no different with your ownership of the co-op. As a member, a portion of what you pay on your electric bill is returned to you. This is called capital credits.

In addition to the financial part of ownership, there is the aspect of power and control. And your membership in the cooperative provides you both. You are in control of who runs your co-op. Every year you have the chance to vote for who will represent your cooperative on the board of directors. Your cooperative is locally controlled by a board made up entirely of co-op members, who live and work in your community. And every member, including you, has the opportunity to run for the board.     

As a member and owner of your cooperative, you not only have ownership of your local electric cooperative, you also have ownership of your cooperative’s regional Generation and Transmission cooperative and your cooperative’s power supplier, Associated Electric Cooperative. This means you have ownership in generating assets such as coal and gas plants, and the transmission lines that bring power to your local co-op and ultimately to you.

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Contact Info

Associated Electric Cooperative Inc.

Mailing address:
P.O. Box 754
Springfield, MO 65801-0754

Tel. 417-881-1204
Email. membersfirst@aeci.org

About Us

Even though your electric cooperative is locally owned and committed to your local community, we are part of something bigger too. We are a network of 51 distribution cooperatives in Missouri, southern Iowa and northeastern Oklahoma, serving 935,000 member homes, farms and businesses. We receive power generation through six regional Generation and Transmission (G&T) cooperatives and one collective G&T, Associated Electric Cooperative.

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©2022 Members First. Cooperatives put members first every day.

  • It's all you
    • Activities for kids
    • Reliable electricity
    • For the good of all
    • Ownership
    • Cooperative principles
    • New members
    • Proud to sponsor kids' activities
    • Co-op month
  • Your money
    • Solar energy information
    • Penny power
    • Capital credits
    • Beneficial electrification
    • Save energy, save money
    • Solar 101
    • Member contests
  • Your safety
    • Indoor electrical safety
    • Outdoor electrical safety
    • Safety for kids
    • Outage safety
    • Power line hazards and cars
  • Your community
    • Local control
    • Personal service
    • Your community
    • Thank a lineworker
  • Balanced generation
    • Epic Failure a Cautionary Tale
    • Diverse energy mix
    • Reliable power
    • Balanced generation summary
  • Podcast
  • Blog
  • About us