Supplied by Cloverland Electric…
DAFTER, Mich.(October 15, 2015) – Cloverland Electric Cooperative’s Board of Directors voted eight to one to return to member regulation at a special meeting held on October 15 at the Dafter Township Hall. Cloverland becomes the eighth of Michigan’s nine distribution electric cooperatives to remove itself from the state regulation for rates, billing practices and service rules.
“Our member-owners have always been able to come directly to their board of directors-their neighbors- with their concerns,” says Cloverland Electric’s Chairperson Bob Schallip. ”This move removes the required extra level of bureaucracy that sent them to a hearing room in Lansing rather than to our local office.”
The vote followed two months of open comment from members including seven community outreach presentations and an opportunity to comment at the special board meeting. Cloverland will now notify the Michigan Public Service Commission of the board’s decision. Member regulation will take effect in mid-January of 2016.
“This decision brings us back to our roots and local control that Cloverland started with in the 1930s,” stated President and CEO Dan Dasho. “Going forward, Cloverland has the flexibility to provide members cost savings and a more open rate process.”
The state legislature unanimously passed Public Act 167 in 2008, giving Michigan electric cooperatives the option to regulate their own rates, billing practices and service rules. Cooperatives remain regulated by the MPSC for territory, reliability and safety issues.