SDCEA works to keep your power affordable
SDCEA exists for one fundamental purpose: to serve you, our member-owners. This commitment means delivering safe, reliable power exactly when you need it while maintaining the lowest possible rates.
As our area’s population grows, energy is being consumed in new ways and at different times, which is increasing demand and increasing our cost of service. We are committed to helping you manage your electric bill. We’re working hard to control costs and are actively exploring the development of a new rate structure that adapts to these shifts, while ensuring fair cost sharing for all our members.
LEARNING ON YOUR BEHALF
Our board of directors set cooperative policy and rates and are elected by you to represent your interests at the cooperative. Board members take their responsibility seriously, which is why they’ve committed significant time to understanding the complexities of rate development.
This year, the board’s education rate process began in January with the first of two comprehensive cost-of-service sessions.
In July, board members participated in a day-long session focused on the results of this initial study and rate design fundamentals. These weren’t simple presentations but deep dives into power delivery and cost allocation.
The sessions covered three critical areas: how much power our members use collectively and by rate class, the patterns of that usage throughout different times and seasons, and the true cost of maintaining the infrastructure and operations needed to deliver reliable electricity. This knowledge forms the foundation for any future rate discussions.
MOVING FORWARD TOGETHER
Rate design — the process of setting SDCEA’s rates — may seem like a technical topic, and we understand it directly affects your household budget and your cooperative’s financial health. By taking time to understand the true costs of electric service and exploring fair ways to allocate those costs, we’re working to ensure we’re keeping your rates as affordable as possible while the cooperative remains strong financially.
BREAKING DOWN YOUR ELECTRIC BILL
Your current monthly bill has two main components, each reflecting different aspects of electric service delivery.
Service Availability Charge
The service availability charge funds a large percentage of essential operational expenses or fixed costs that exist regardless of how much electricity you use. Think of this as the cost of having electric service available to your home 24 hours a day, seven days a week. This charge helps fund several critical areas:
- Infrastructure maintenance and upgrades
- Operational costs including materials, taxes, and labor
- Consumer services such as outage response, billing, and communication
- Regulatory compliance for safety, environmental, and reliability standards
Each of these cost categories has experienced increases over recent years, and upward cost pressure continues.
Energy Costs (kWh)
The second part of your bill reflects the cost of the electricity you use. This includes:
- Energy Consumption – measured in kilowatt-hours (kWh)
- Demand – the highest amount of electricity used by the entire cooperative at any single moment during the month (currently included in your kWh charge)
WHY DEMAND MATTERS TO YOU
Demand represents a significant cost factor that continues to grow as more members join the cooperative and electrify their homes.
For example: imagine it is the coldest day of the year. Most members may decide to turn up their heat, do laundry, cook, and use other devices simultaneously. Our wholesale supplier must have enough power generation and transmission capacity to meet that peak demand. SDCEA must also build our distribution system to serve that peak, even if it only occurs briefly once a month.
These demand costs are passed to SDCEA by our power provider, Tri-State.
EXPLORING NEW RATE DESIGN OPTIONS
The board’s educational process aims to identify rate design options that could provide members with more control over their monthly bills while ensuring costs are allocated fairly.
One promising option: encouraging members to reduce usage during peak demand times by shifting energy use to off-peak hours or using automated technologies. This could lower bills for individuals and reduce overall costs for all members.
We’re also exploring:
- Smart thermostats
- Heat pumps
- Water heater controls
- Time-based pricing
- Other energy-efficient solutions
NEXT STEPS
This rate education process will continue over the coming months as board members and staff work through complex technical and policy considerations.
No rate changes will be implemented without:
- Member education
- Transparent communication
- Public workshops this fall
Stay informed through:
- Colorado Country Life magazine
- myelectric.coop
- facebook.com/SDCEA.Inc
- @sdceaenergy on Instagram
John Byers is the CEO of Sangre de Cristo Electric Association. SDCEA’s mission is to safely provide reliable electric energy and services to power the lives of our members and our communities.
