National Lineman Appreciation Day on April 18, 2019

Friday | March 1, 2019
United Power is dedicated to keeping our members’ lights on. That wouldn’t be possible without the h...
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United Power Celebrating 80th Annual Meeting
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Friday | March 1, 2019
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United Power will be celebrating a special cooperative milestone at its Annual Meeting & Director Election on April 17, 2019.

United Power will be celebrating a special cooperative milestone at its Annual Meeting & Director Election on April 17, 2019. The Brighton-headquartered electric utility will join a short list of rural electric cooperatives celebrating 80 years of providing safe and reliable power. The meeting will include a special tribute to United Power’s history and highlight the communities it serves.

All members are invited to connect with cooperative leadership at the annual meeting, enjoy the company of fellow cooperative members and have a chance to win one of several door prizes. United Power’s Annual Meeting will be held at the Adams County Fairgrounds/Regional Park located at 9755 Henderson Road, Brighton, CO 80601.

There are four candidates vying for a position on the cooperative’s board of directors. One seat in the East, West and South districts is up for election this year. Profiles of the 2019 candidates are included in this issue of the United Newsline.

Ballot packets will be mailed out to members in late March, and include profiles of each candidate. Members may cast their ballots in person at the Annual Meeting, drop them at a United Power office or mail them postage-paid prior to the deadline in the voting envelope.

While candidates live in and represent a geographic area of our territory, they are elected “at-large,” which means members should vote for one candidate in each district. Please follow voting and signature instructions carefully to ensure you return a valid ballot.

Member registration will be open from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. Members who did not mail in their ballot or chose not to vote prior to the meeting will be issued a ballot and be able to cast their votes in the Director election. After members have cast their ballot, they can enjoy a barbecue dinner with us, visit the educational exhibit booths and be entertained by musician Dave Connelly.

The official business meeting of the members will begin at 6:30 p.m. and will include reports from the Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer John Parker and a report from the Board Treasurer. Election results will be announced prior to adjournment and door prize drawings will conclude the meeting. To learn more about the Annual Meeting, or the candidates running for a seat on the cooperative’s board of directors, keep reading this issue, or visit www.unitedpower.com.

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United Power to Hold 80th Annual Meeting April 17
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Monday | February 18, 2019
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United Power will celebrate its 80th Anniversary at the 2019 Annual Meeting of members on Wednesday, April 17, 2019, at the Adams County Fairground and Regional Park Complex. Registration and balloting open at 4:30 p.m. and the meeting will begin at 6:30 p.m.

Director Election Ballots to Be Mailed in March

United Power will celebrate its 80th Anniversary at the 2019 Annual Meeting of members on Wednesday, April 17, 2019, at the Adams County Fairground and Regional Park Complex. Registration and balloting open at 4:30 p.m. and the meeting will begin at 6:30 p.m.

The annual business meeting will include a barbecue dinner, director election, cooperative update, anniversary celebration, and door prizes. All United Power members are invited to attend the annual business meeting of the not-for-profit electric cooperative and cast their ballots in the 2019 Director Election.

A seat in the East, West and South director districts will be up for a three-year term in the 2019 Director Election. Nominations by written petition were due to the cooperative on Friday, Feb. 15. The candidates running in the 2019 Director Election are as follows:

 

District E (East):
Elizabeth Martin

District S (South):
Keith E. Alquist, II
Bradley J. Case

District W (West):
Ursula J. Morgan

 

United Power will host four Meet the Candidate Forums where members can learn more about each candidate.

  • March 18 at 6:30 p.m. at Adams County Fairgrounds
  • March 19 at 7:30 a.m. at Fort Lupton Recreation Center
  • March 21 at 7:30 a.m. at Coal Creek Canyon Community Center
  • March 22 at 7:30 a.m. at E.L.F. Grill

In addition, profiles provided by each candidate will be included in the ballot packets mailed to all members at the end of March. Members should return their ballots via postage-paid mail prior to Apr. 15, or vote in person at the Annual Meeting on Apr. 17.  Members may also return ballots in a ballot drop-box located at each of United Power’s offices. Ballot drop boxes will close at 2 p.m. on Apr. 17.

To learn more about the candidates, for more information about the Meet the Candidate Forums, or for more information about the cooperative’s 80th Annual Meeting please visit the Annual Meeting page.

2019 Official Posting of Nominations for Director by Petition

Friday | February 15, 2019
The following persons have been nominated by petition to run for Director of United Power, Inc., in ...
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Questions about Demand?
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Friday | January 25, 2019
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United Power’s new rate structure went into effect on January 1st, and members will begin to see the 2019 rates reflected as separate demand and energy charges on their February bills. While energy is the total power used, demand refers to the capacity needed to serve your location. The new rates break apart the costs for demand and energy to more fairly charge each member for their impact on the electric system and the energy they use.

United Power’s new rate structure went into effect on January 1st, and members will begin to see the 2019 rates reflected as separate demand and energy charges on their February bills. While energy is the total power used, demand refers to the capacity needed to serve your location. The new rates break apart the costs for demand and energy to more fairly charge each member for their impact on the electric system and the energy they use.

Why did you change to this rate structure?

The way our members use power has changed, and we now have more detailed information about how each member uses that power. On the blended rate, some members were paying more than they should, while others were not paying enough. The demand component allows us to more fairly charge each member in a way that is more closely aligned with our costs to provide that service.

How do I see when I hit my demand?

Demand measures the highest 15-minute interval of power consumption over the billing period and your bill will show you the kilowatt (kW) demand measurement of that highest interval. If you’d like to investigate what contributed to your demand charge, the Power Portal will show you the day and time that your demand peaked. Pinpointing the day and time will give you the information to reflect on how you were using energy.

Perhaps your demand was highest on a cold Saturday afternoon when you had soup on the stove, bread in the oven, the kids were downstairs gaming with a space heater on, and it was marathon laundry and cleaning day for the family. Operating all of these appliances at once required more system capacity for United Power to serve you, and your demand charge for the month is a fairer representation of how you used the electric system.

How can I reduce my demand?

Monitoring your use in the Power Portal will help you understand what is driving your demand. You’ll see the effect of using multiple appliances at once and what your energy profile looks like when you stagger appliances. If you’d like to keep your demand charges as low as possible, small changes in the way you use energy can make a difference. Here are some easy ways to reduce your demand:

  • Spread out the use of major appliances. Major electrical appliances that may contribute to high demand costs include air conditioners, electric clothes dryers, electric water heaters, electric ranges and ovens.
  • Use small cooking appliances or an outdoor grill.
  • Use a programmable or smart thermostat to pre-heat or pre-cool your home before you get home and operate kitchen appliances.
  • Use a timer on your water heater, dishwasher and pool pump.
  • Set a timer on your electric vehicle charger for the middle of the night after other major appliances are not in use.

2018: A Year in Review

Friday | January 25, 2019
United Power works tirelessly behind the scenes year after year to bring our members safe and reliab...
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Choosing Energy Efficiency Appliances

Friday | January 25, 2019
If you’re holding on to older household appliances, now may be a good time to consider swapping them...
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A New Name: Union REA Becomes United Power
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Friday | January 25, 2019
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This is the second in a three part series chronicling the cooperative’s history leading up to its 80th Annual Meeting this April.

In the late 1980s, United Power overcame a competitive territory war and takeover bid from Public Service Company of Colorado, now Xcel Energy. The rocky battle led the cooperative to reevaluate its service and commit to trimming rates and delivering more reliable power for its members. This is the second in a three part series chronicling the cooperative’s history leading up to its 80th Annual Meeting this April.

Following a member vote in August 1987 to reject Public Service Company of Colorado’s (PSCo) takeover bid of Union Rural Electric Association (Union REA), the Colorado State Legislature urged the two electric utilities to settle its territory dispute in the interest of the public. The dispute had resulted in unnecessary duplication of distribution infrastructure over the years, which was costly to members and customers. 

Three years later in 1990, the two utilities finalized an agreement that would exchange certain territories and establish firm territory boundaries. Union REA would begin serving Brighton, Ft. Lupton, Hudson, Keenesburg and the rural areas of Platte Valley. In return, PSCo would receive territory the new Denver International Airport was to be built on. The transfer closed the corridor separating the two areas the cooperative served along the plains.

With the territory battle behind it, the cooperative began focusing on resolving some glaring problems brought to light during the takeover attempt. Union REA’s Board made a commitment to improve rates and reliability using PSCo’s performance records as a measuring stick. With record performance levels and expectations aimed toward the future, Union REA became United Power, intending to help leave behind the unsophisticated image of the traditional cooperative. 

The name change to United Power symbolized the cooperative’s commitment to its rural heritage while presenting a progressive utility to a new urban member-base. 

By November 1990, United Power had begun serving all the communities acquired in the exchange except for a lone holdout, Brighton, which had voted to deny the service transfer to the cooperative. 

A couple years later, United Power had developed a reputation of reliability and reducing rates. When PSCo approached the Brighton city council again in 1992, United Power members were paying 6 percent less than Brighton residents served by PSCo. 

As the cooperative and PSCo worked to move the transfer forward, United Power made dedicated efforts to educate Brighton residents and answer questions concerning service, reliability and cost of power to bolster its image as a cutting-edge power supplier. United Power assured residents it would track outage and restoration times, guarantee reliability factors as strong or better than PSCo and pledged to freeze rates for two years if the transfer was approved. 

In 1993, United Power finally welcomed Brighton and its residents to the cooperative family.