Clean Cooperative
  • Home
  • News
  • Energy Transition
  • Tri-State
  • Xcel
  • Reports
    • Uncooperative: Colorado
    • Uncooperative: New Mexico
  • About

Colorado Rural Electric Association spent electric cooperatives’ money supporting Republican politicians

10/23/2019

 
By Joe Smyth | @joesmyth
The statewide association for electric cooperatives in Colorado describes its political spending as bipartisan and funded by voluntary donations, but a review of filings with the Colorado Secretary of State shows that it actually spent nearly a half million dollars last year in a failed effort to keep the Colorado state Senate in Republican hands. Some of that money came directly from electric cooperatives, not individual voluntary donations, which means the cooperatives’ customers funded a portion of the political spending.

The Colorado Rural Electric Association includes every electric cooperative in the state among its members, and it lobbies on state policy issues, as well as publishing a magazine that is distributed to co-op members and hosting events and trainings on energy issues, safety, and other topics.
​
But in recent years, the group has increased its spending on political campaigns, through its “Colorado Advocates for Rural Electrification” political action committee and a new independent expenditure committee it created last year.
​
CREA describes its political spending as bipartisan and funded by “voluntary donations”

The Colorado Rural Electric Association (CREA) claims that its political spending is bipartisan, and funded by voluntary donations. For example, CREA describes its political action committee as a “bipartisan committee.” Similarly, the registration with the Colorado Secretary of State for the newer independent expenditure committee describes its purpose: “Promote the interests of cooperative electric associations by supporting or opposing candidates for state general assembly and statewide office, regardless of party affiliation, based on their policy positions on rural electricity.”
​
Moreover, Colorado Rural Electric Association executive director Kent Singer has described the funding for the group’s political spending as “voluntary,” and assured co-op members that “none of the dollars collected through your electric bills go to political candidates.”

In a 2016 column in the association’s magazine, Colorado Country Life, Singer wrote:

We also work with legislators from the time they are candidates, sometimes offering financial support to state legislative candidates through the co-ops’ political action committee, Colorado Advocates for Rural Electrification. CARE, a bipartisan entity, operates independently from CREA with a separate governing board made up of electric co-op directors and employees elected from across the state. (Funding for CARE comes from voluntary donations.)

Singer was more explicit in a 2011 column in the same magazine: “CARE and ACRE are exclusively opt-in programs. Rest assured that none of the dollars collected through your electric bills go to political candidates.” That point was important enough for the magazine to repeat and highlight.

Picture
But a review of filings with the Colorado Secretary of State shows that while some of the funding for the co-op association’s political spending comes from voluntary donations by co-op directors and staff, hundreds of thousands of dollars have come from the co-ops themselves in recent years. Electric cooperatives don’t have shareholders, and nearly all of their revenue comes from electric bills paid by ratepayers.

The table below shows the contributions from electric cooperatives to the Colorado Advocates for Rural Electrification political action committee and independent expenditure committee from 2015 through 2018.

Electric cooperative

2016 election
(2015 & 2016)

2018 election
(2017 & 2018)

Total
(2015-2018)

Empire Electric

$4,000

$4,000

$8,000

Highline Electric

$5,000

$5,000

$10,000

Intermountain Rural Electric

$10,000

$10,000

$20,000

K.C. Electric

$4,000

$5,000

$9,000

Morgan County Rural Electric

$10,000

$2,500

$12,500

Mountain Parks Electric

$0

$5,800

$5,800

Mountain View Electric

$22,650

$20,000

$42,650

Poudre Valley Rural Electric

$15,000

$20,000

$35,000

San Isabel Electric

$15,000

$11,076

$26,076

San Luis Valley Rural Electric

$0

$15,000

$15,000

Sangre de Cristo Electric

$7,500

$7,500

$15,000

Southeast Colorado Power

$0

$200

$200

United Power

$22,500

$25,000

$47,500

White River Electric

$20,000

$20,000

$40,000

Y-W Electric

$10,000

$10,000

$20,000

Totals

$145,650

$161,076

$306,726

 

During the 2016 and 2018 election cycles, 15 of the 22 electric cooperatives in Colorado gave money to the Colorado Advocates for Rural Electrification political action committee and/or independent expenditure committee. Seven electric cooperatives did not contribute any money to those committees in recent years, according to filings with the Colorado Secretary of State. These figures only include money from the co-op itself, not voluntary contributions from individual co-op directors or staff.

According to the CREA website, “CREA actively promotes and solicits memberships” in Colorado Advocates for Rural Electrification, whose “funds are maintained in the CREA office in Denver, Colorado.”

Kent Singer did not directly respond to a question about whether CREA had changed its policy in recent years to begin asking electric cooperatives to fund CARE, instead stating that “Members of CREA can choose to contribute to CARE or not, as they see fit.”
​

Here’s the full response from Singer:

Colorado Advocates for Rural Electrification (CARE) is a nonpartisan political action committee that was formed to support candidates for the legislature who support electric co-op issues. Members of CARE elect an independent committee that oversees fundraising, endorses candidates, and authorizes expenditures. Members of CREA can choose to contribute to CARE or not, as they see fit. CARE reports contributions and expenditures to the Colorado Secretary of State in compliance with Colorado campaign finance laws. CARE supports CREA’s political advocacy efforts, one of the four key functions of the association (the others being safety/loss control; communications; and education).



Co-op political spending focused on keeping the state Senate in Republican hands

In keeping with its claims of bipartisanship, Colorado Advocates for Rural Electrification endorsed both Republicans and Democrats, and its political action committee contributed token amounts to many candidates, usually $200. A website for the political action committee, careforcoops.me, appears to have been deleted earlier this year, but an archive of the website shows the list of candidates it endorsed.

But the association’s independent expenditure committee spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on just two close races that were considered pivotal to determining whether Republicans would maintain control of the state Senate last year.

The Colorado Advocates for Rural Electrification Independent Expenditure Committee spent $467,546.67 during the 2018 election, according to the group’s finance history with the Colorado Secretary of State. A review of the group’s filings shows that nearly all of that, $444,327.96, went to political ads and other electioneering efforts supporting the Republican state Senate candidates running in District 20 and District 24, Christine Jensen and Beth Humenik.

The effort failed, and Democrats won a majority of the state Senate. Christine Jensen lost to Jessie Danielson, while Beth Humenik lost to Faith Winter, who is now Chair of the Energy and Transportation Committee.
​Crossposted from Energy and Policy Institute

Comments are closed.
    Tweet
      Sign up for email updates
    Sign up for email updates

    Recent Articles

    Basin Electric faces growing pressure on coal from co-ops, insurers, and banks​

    Tri-State: Moving a cooperative power provider from coal to clean energy​


    Tri-State will replace coal plants with a gigawatt of new wind and solar

    United Power and La Plata Electric ask Colorado Public Utilities Commission to determine Tri-State exit fee

    Colorado Rural Electric Association spent electric cooperatives’ money supporting Republican politicians​

    Colorado Public Utilities Commissioner questions "whether or not Tri-State has been candid with us"

    Rural America could power a renewable economy - but first we need to solve coal debt​

    Tri-State explores FERC rate regulation to limit state oversight

    Poudre Valley Electric sets "80 by 2030" carbon free goal

    Guzman Energy proposal would finance retirement of Tri-State coal plants, add 1.2 gigawatts of new wind and solar power

    Colorado Public Utilities Commission will oversee Tri-State resource planning

    Colorado communities and state Energy Office urge Public Utilities Commission oversight of Tri-State

    Reports examine the impacts of Tri-State's high wholesale power costs​

    Tri-State executive involved with anti-Clean Air Act group since 2005

    US Congressional Committee requests details of Tri-State funding to anti-Clean Air Act group

    Renewable energy projects stalled in 2018 among Tri-State member co-ops

    Second co-op asks Tri-State to pull “Better Together” ads

    Tri-State won’t allow co-op members to attend annual meeting

    Tri-State expects member co-ops to support bylaw changes at annual meeting

    Rocky Mountain Farmers Union calls on Tri-State to adopt flexible contracts and more clean energy

    Co-ops in Colorado push for change at Tri-State

    Will Municipal Energy Agency of Nebraska remain reliant on coal?​

    Tri-State ad campaign tells co-ops they’re “better together”

    La Plata Electric concerned Tri-State debt will lead to higher rates​

    Colorado Public Utilities Commission asserts jurisdiction over Tri-State​

    More Colorado co-ops announce clean energy goals

    Ski industry climate change efforts shift to electric utilities and their regulators

    Public Utilities Commission rejects Tri-State motion to exclude Colorado Energy Office from exit charge case

    Tri-State claims that co-ops "have intervened on Tri-State's behalf at the PUC” don’t add up

    Colorado state legislators urge Public Utilities Commission to determine Tri-State exit charge

    United Power says Tri-State policies are turning away large customers

    Next PUC Commissioner John Gavan "consensus choice" of Governors Hickenlooper and Polis

    Tri-State policy change discourages battery projects in rural Colorado and New Mexico

    Colorado Public Utilities Commission orders Tri-State to "satisfy or answer" exit charge complaint from Delta Montrose Electric

    United Power seeks solutions to "increasingly outmoded G&T business models"

    Clean Energy Means Business Summit highlights renewable energy opportunities and challenges in rural Colorado

    ​Governor-elect Jared Polis says moving Colorado toward more renewable energy will be a top priority

    Electric cooperative officials discuss cheap renewable energy and an “eroding monopoly”

    Delta Montrose Electric members vote for new financing options, supporting a potential buyout of Tri-State contract

    Poudre Valley Electric requests Tri-State policy changes and fuel mix study

    Holy Cross Energy plans to shift away from coal, aiming for 70% renewable energy​

    What do corporate renewable energy commitments mean for electric utilities?

    Colorado Energy Plan approval will mean new renewable energy investments in rural Colorado

    Report: Tri-State could save $600 million by shifting from coal to renewable energy​

    Delta Montrose Electric seeks new financing options to end contract with Tri-State

    Wind energy jobs in rural Colorado attract bipartisan support

    Colorado Energy Plan analysis shows switching from coal to renewable energy will boost jobs and local tax revenue​

    Poudre Valley Electric and Xcel Energy Colorado President win national awards from Smart Electric Power Alliance

    Latest coal plant subsidy proposal could hit electricity bills in the West

    Moody’s report: “High quality renewable resources” could help Tri-State and Basin Electric navigate rising carbon transition risks

    Senator Heinrich highlights “frustrations in New Mexico” with Tri-State’s limits on local solar

    Moody’s report shows Tri-State’s coal plants are more expensive than new renewable energy

    Tri-State’s limits on local energy development are a growing problem for co-op members

    ​Governor Hickenlooper discusses Tri-State at the Climate Leadership Conference

    Bids for Xcel’s Colorado Energy Plan include a proposal for the world’s largest battery

    ​New wind and solar power in Colorado is now cheaper than existing coal plants

    ​Companies' 100% renewable energy goals are getting results in Colorado

    ​What does cheap solar mean for electric cooperatives?

    Colorado towns and cities are helping push utilities to embrace renewable energy

    ​How are electric cooperatives navigating the transition from coal to cheap clean energy?​

    ​Blocked from building more solar projects, United Power shifts to community batteries


    Economic reality sets in for Tri-State efforts to expand the Holcomb coal plant

    Solar projects in the works in Grand and Jackson counties

    ​Mountain Parks Electric grapples with solar

    Categories

    All
    100% Renewable Energy
    Basin Electric
    Black Hills Energy
    Central New Mexico Electric
    Colorado Energy Plan
    Colorado Public Utilities Commission
    Colorado Rural Electric Association
    Comanche Coal Plant
    Craig Coal Plant
    Delta Montrose Electric
    DMEA Vs Tri State
    Dry Fork Coal Plant
    Empire Electric
    Escalante Coal Plant
    Generation And Transmission Associations
    Global Climate Action Summit
    Governor Hickenlooper
    Grand Valley Power
    Gunnison County Electric
    Guzman Energy
    Highline Electric
    Holy Cross Energy
    Intermountain Rural Electric
    Intermountain Rural Electric Association
    Jared Polis
    K.C. Electric
    Kit Carson Electric
    La Plata Electric Association
    Mora-San Miguel Electric
    Morgan County Electric
    Mountain Parks Electric
    Mountain View Electric
    Municipal Energy Agency Of Nebraska
    Net Metering
    Otero County Electric
    Platte River Power Authority
    Poudre Valley Electric
    Poudre Valley Rural Electric
    Sangre De Cristo Electric
    San Isabel Electric
    San Luis Valley Electric
    San Miguel Power
    Senator Heinrich
    Sierra Electric
    Southeast Colorado Power
    Springerville Coal Plant
    Tri State Generation And Transmission
    United Power
    White River Electric
    Wind Energy
    Xcel Energy
    Yampa Valley Electric Association
    Y-W Electric

    Archives

    November 2020
    July 2020
    February 2020
    November 2019
    October 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017

    RSS Feed

  • Home
  • News
  • Energy Transition
  • Tri-State
  • Xcel
  • Reports
    • Uncooperative: Colorado
    • Uncooperative: New Mexico
  • About