Paulding Putnam Electric Co-Op

The cooperative was formed during the Great Depression. During this time in our Country’s history the rural farms had little electricity available to them. Large investor owned power companies did not provide power beyond the town boundaries. The large utilities could not imagine rural farms using enough electricity to pay for the construction cost to provide service to the wide open areas across the country. With investment dollars limited by the depression farm families and utilities could not raise the capital to build the electric facilities needed to serve the farms.

In the early 1930’s President Roosevelt started a series of programs to stimulate the economy. One of these programs was the Rural Electrification Administration or REA. This program would provide needed capital to utilities to bring electric power service to the rural farms. The program was first offered to the large utilities. Again, the big investor utilities said no believing that rural users of electricity could not provide enough profits to repay the government loans. The original loans were for 2% interest. During the depression this was still a very competitive interest rate. The difference was the availability of the money. What happened next was classic American willpower. Farmers and other rural residents got together and formed their own utilities. They used the cooperative model that had been successful in other areas and began serving customers in 1935 and 1936.

Paulding Putnam was formed in 1936. The board of trustees approved the original Code of Regulations on June 19, 1936. The membership of the cooperative approved the Code at the cooperative’s annual meeting held on March 31, 1938. The original aim of the cooperative was a simple one: “To make electric energy available to its members at the lowest cost consistent with sound economy and good management”. That simple principal still guides us today.

In the past 70 plus years the cooperative has grown and changed in many ways. The cooperative now serves over 12,900 homes and businesses. Paulding Putnam serves in both Ohio and Indiana. The cooperative employs 34 people at two offices. The main office is located in Paulding, Ohio. A district office is located in Columbus Grove, Ohio and serves most of the Putnam county area.

The cooperative is part of two main organizations. First is the Ohio statewide cooperative group and its power supplier Buckeye Power. The second is the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association. Through these two groups the cooperative receives many services ranging from power supply, safety, and employee training to pension and retirement investment plans. The National group provides a continued Washington D.C. presence for the cooperatives. Paulding Putnam is one of 25 Ohio cooperatives and one of over 900 electric cooperatives nationwide.

Paulding Putnam Electric Cooperative is here today to provide quality electric service to its members in Ohio and Indiana. The mission of the co-op has not changed in over 70 years. Through the direction of the locally elected 9 member board of directors the membership is provided hands on control of the future of their cooperative.

What is a Co-op?

A co-op is founded when people with a similar need form an organization to provide goods or services, like a farmers market food co-op or financial services credit union co-op. Electric co-ops were formed in much the same way to provide electricity to rural areas abandoned by for-profit electric utilities.

There are no Paulding Putnam electric  customers. Our Member-Owners have an equal voice in the co-op’s direction and certain rights that are quite different from those who are customers of a for-profit utility, owned by shareholders.

Members gain a share of the co-op ownership as they use our services. Our net margin after expenses and reserves does not belong to the utility; it belongs to our Members. The margins must be used either to improve and maintain operations or be distributed back to Members. This is a major, unique and beneficial aspect of a cooperative.

Electric cooperatives are:

• private, independent electric utility businesses
• owned by the members they serve
• incorporated under the laws of the states in which they operate
• established to provide at-cost electric service
• governed by a board of trustees, elected from the membership, who set policies and procedures that are implemented by the cooperatives’ professional staff

In fact, according to the National Cooperative Business Association (NCBA), more than 120 million people–two out of every five people–are members of one of 48,000 U.S. cooperatives.  Worldwide, more than 750,000 cooperatives serve 730 million members.

You might be familiar with some well-known national cooperatives, such as Welch’s, Land O’Lakes, Ocean Spray, Sunkist, Publix Supermarkets, ACE Hardware, Nationwide Insurance and the Associated Press.

Nearly 1,000 rural electric co-ops own and maintain nearly half of the electric distribution lines in the U. S., which cover 75 percent of the nation’s land mass and provide electricity to 36 million people.

One of our corporate values is that we care about our communities…

Community involvement is something PPEC views as a high priority. It’s what makes good neighbors and it can be a powerful and positive force. Almost every employee at PPEC is involved in some form of volunteer work in their community. In addition, employees regularly volunteer for company-sponsored community service projects over and above their own individual service efforts to their neighbors. PPEC is proud of its many dedicated employees who share their time, talents and treasure to help their neighbors by volunteering for work projects that benefit the communities throughout our service area. PPEC and its employees are known for their long history of service to the community. That service manifests itself in many ways.