October is nationally recognized as Breast Cancer Awareness Month, an annual campaign to increase awareness and rally people to help fund research to find a cure for the disease.

This October, United Power joined the ongoing battle to find a cure through an employee-led effort to support colleagues, raise funds and create awareness. The idea began to spread after co-op linemen asked permission to wear pink hard hats throughout the month, and evolved into a company-wide engagement effort.

“It’s exciting that this movement began internally by our linemen,” said Community Outreach Specialist Julie Stewart. “It’s even more exciting to see the support from the rest of our employees. As a co-op, caring for our communities is a core part of who we are, and I think this demonstrates how much they care.”

The cooperative issued linemen pink hard hats to wear on the job throughout the month of October, and employees received pink “United for the Cure” shirts. Employees were encouraged to wear their shirts every Thursday during the month. To raise funds for breast cancer treatment and support, internal departments donated themed silent auction baskets. The silent auction raised $5,000. The check was presented to the Platte Valley Medical Center Foundation at an employee meeting in November.

“The employee engagement and support we witnessed was more than we could have hoped for,” said Member Engagement Officer Meghan Dewey. “This was a heartwarming suggestion from employees, who all helped contribute in a big way.”

Breast cancer impacts hundreds of thousands of families every year. This year alone, approximately 270,000 new cases of breast cancer are expected to be diagnosed in women in the United States, not including non-invasive forms. It is the most common form of cancer diagnosed in women aside from skin cancer.

You can continue to help the fight locally by donating to the PVMC Foundation, which supports critical patient programs at Platte Valley Medical Center.

United Power has payment kiosks at our Brighton, Coal Creek and Carbon Valley office locations. These easy-to-use and hassle-free kiosks accept cash, credit card or check payments. Cash and credit card payments made using a kiosk are applied to your account immediately, and accounts subject to disconnection are restored immediately upon payment.

To make a payment at one of these kiosks, bring your United Power account number and a form of payment. 

Set Up Your Fast Pass for Quick Access

To make your transactions faster, there is an option to set up a “Fast Pass,” which will be prompted once you complete a successful transaction. You’ll create a 4-digit PIN and receive a printed barcode.

The next time you visit a United Power payment kiosk, select “Fast Pass” and quickly find your account with the barcode/PIN or the phone number you used when setting up your Fast Pass.

Please be careful to enter the correct phone and account numbers when making a payment because your Fast Pass will reflect these numbers exactly as you input them.

The holiday season is quickly approaching, and with it the time to put up festive lights, both indoors and outdoors, to enjoy along with the holiday season.

According to Electrical Safety Foundation International, nearly 90 percent of Americans decorate their homes as part of winter holidays. While holiday lighting does contribute to the joy, appeal and splendor of the season, using them without following important safety precautions can increase the risk of fires and electrical injuries.

ESFI recommends holiday safety steps to ensure you and your family are able to enjoy the season comfortably and worry-free:

1. The best decorations are safe decorations, so when you’re decorating, make sure not to run cords under rugs or furniture.

2. Always turn off your decorations when you leave your home and when you’re sleeping.

3. Don’t overload outlets or extensions cords. If you’re using extension cords or adapters that add receptacles, consider having a qualified electrician add more outlets to your home.

4. Only use electronics in dry areas. As tempting as it is, you just can’t decorate your aquarium with icicle lights.

5. Every home needs a working smoke alarm in each bedroom, outside sleeping areas and on every level, including the basement.

6. Inspect your decorations and discard any that are damaged or worn out. Check each set of lights, new or old, for broken or cracked sockets, loose connections or frayed or bare wires. Plug light strings together as you inspect them but before hanging.

7. ESFI recommends buying your family Arc-Fault Circuit Interrupter breakers or outlets. Many electrical fires that occur every year could be prevented by AFCIs.

Annual Regulatory Meeting Planned for November 8, 2019

Meeting Agenda

Every year, the United Power board takes a deep dive into the rates we charge for electricity and considers both the revenue requirements of the cooperative and the anticipated load growth for the cooperative in setting rates for the upcoming year. The United Power board will be considering some adjustments in current rates and adding an additional rate for 2020 at its November 8 Regulatory Meeting.

Recommendations from staff for the upcoming year include a modest 1.5-2% increase for residential members. Similar to last year’s rate changes, the adjustment being proposed would slightly increase the demand component and reduce the cost of energy. In 2019, the cooperative incorporated a demand charge into their residential rate, while reducing the cost of energy.

“When United Power rolled out the advanced metering infrastructure several years ago, we were able to collect better data about how each member uses power in their home or business,” stated Dean Hubbuck, Director of Power Supply and Rates. “Using this data, we constructed a rate that considers not only how much power a member consumes, but we can also measure their impact on the grid that supplies that power. By breaking apart these separate components members are billed more accurately for their use and impact.”

The rate structure not only allowed the cooperative to charge members more fairly for their impact on the electrical system, but it also put more power into the hands of members to control their costs by shifting the way they use electricity in their homes. For instance, by spreading out the use of household appliances like dryers and dishwashers through the course of the day, members can have a direct impact on their demand and reduce their costs.

This year, the board is also considering a new rate that would help lessen the impact on members who utilize electric heating technology in their homes. Homes utilizing electric thermal storage units experienced a larger impact from the rate change in 2019 when compared with the average household. A group of members concerned about the increase met with staff and board members to voice their concerns and ask the board to consider their unique situation.

“One of the best things about being served by a cooperative is that members have direct access to their regulators – the board of directors,” stated Hubbuck. “In response to our members concerns we hosted public meetings, and the new rate being considered in November is in response to these meetings.”

The changes are planned to be in effect for consumption beginning January 1, which means members would see the changes on their February bills. Once the rate adjustments are decided, the changes will be communicated via the United Newsline and on the cooperative’s website.

United Power offices will open at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, November 26th in anticipation of the incoming winter storm.

To make a payment, manage your account or report an outage, please login to SmartHub https://unitedpower.smarthub.coop/

As always, our dispatch and operations personnel remain on duty to respond to outages and emergencies.