Making sure that electric bills are affordable to consumers across the nation was the focus of the nearly 3,000 electric cooperative leaders who descended on Washington, D.C., earlier this month for a legislative conference sponsored by the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association.
Aaron Bradshaw, manager of Intercounty Electric Cooperative in Licking, along with directors Tom Fleener and Ted Sheppard, were part of a 62-strong group of rural electric leaders from Missouri who took part in the annual legislative rally. Representatives from the 900-plus electric cooperatives nationwide visited Capitol Hill offices during the conference to discuss a wide range of issues, including climate change, energy efficiency and other topics of importance to rural communities.
With Congress still in session, cooperative leaders said the timing of this year’s rally couldn’t have been better.
“This was a critical time to be meeting with our elected officials,” said Barry Hart, executive vice president of the Association of Missouri Electric Cooperatives. “They need to hear our message that rural people cannot take another hike in their electric bills.”
Missouri’s delegation met with their respective U.S. representatives, including Sam Graves, Vicky Hartzler, Jason Smith, Billy Long, Blaine Luetkemeyer, Ann Wagner, both Sen. Roy Blunt and Sen. Claire McCaskill, in addition to urban legislators Emanuel Cleaver and Lacy Clay. The cooperative leaders found strong support from the entire Missouri congressional leadership.