Good evening, and thank you for attending the 87th Jackson County REMC Annual Meeting.
My name is Mark McKinney, and Im honored to serve as the CEO of your cooperative. Tonight, I would like to share some highlights from 2024 and provide a few updates on whats happening so far in 2025.
ELECTRIC DIVISION HIGHLIGHTS
After seeing significant retail rate increases in 2023, Im pleased to report that in 2024, members saw an average 7.5% decrease in electric rates. This was driven primarily by reductions in our wholesale power cost tracker from Hoosier Energy, ou power supplier.
Rates have remained stable so far in 2025, and projections indicate that the stability should continue into 2026.
We are currently undergoing a cost-of-service study to better align our retail rates with the upcoming wholesale rates from Hoosier Energy If approved by the board of directors, new retail rates will go into effect in April 2026. We will provide more information once those rates are finalized and approved.
We continue to invest in the safety and reliability of our electric system to provide service to 25,337 electric accounts. In 2024, we invested $8.4 million in our electric utility plant, which included $2.8 million in right-of-way maintenance, $2.7 million in plant maintenance, and the rest in other plant-related activities.
These investments are working. We ended 2024 with a reliability rating of 99.953%, and well keep working to improve that number.
Financially, your cooperative is strong, which allows us to make these investments and retire capital credits again this year. You will hear more about this from Board President Walter Hunter later.
FIBER DIVISION HIGHLIGHTS
Since our very first fiber-optic broadband connection in May 2018, weve made tremendous progress. Today, our fiber-optic broadband network reaches 95% of our members. We are finalizing construction in Country Squire Lakes, which will complete the buildout within our electric service territory.
To date, weve installed over 2,000 miles of fiber-optic cable and proudly serve 13,305 fiber-optic broadband accounts and 454 telephone service accounts.
This year, we started a phased five-year equipment replacement project to modernize our broadband infrastructure. This upgrade will allow us to offer broadband speeds up to 6 Gbps, both upload and download, while continuing our commitment to price transparency. We have not increased our monthly rates since we started offering service in 2018, and we still have no hidden fees, router rental fees, managed Wi-Fi fees, or contracts for our members.
Financially, Im proud to report that our Fiber Division ended 2024 with positive margins, seven years ahead of schedule. We posted a total of $342,389.73 in margins, which included:
$255,483.51 in non-operating margins, which will be used to reduce the divisions current capital deficit of $9 million.
$86,906. 22 in operating margins, which will be allocated as capital credits to broadband subscribers for 2024.
Just like the Electric Division capital credits, the board of directors will determine the retirement schedule for these Fiber Division capital credits in the future.
This fiber-optic network belongs to you, our members. We remain committed to delivering fast, reliable internet service from your local, not-for-profit, member-owned cooperative. If you have not subscribed yet, we invite you to join the members who have.
JACKSON SOLUTIONS
In 2024, we launched a new subsidiary called Jackson Solutions to bring value-added products and services to our members. Today, we offer two offerings.
The GenerLink transfer switch lets you safely connect a portable generator directly behind your electric meter, giving you the ease of connecting your generator and peace of mind during outages.
Our Honeywell security systems offer 24/7 professional monitoring with a user-friendly app so you can manage your homes security from your phone. To learn more about either service, please visit our website or give us a call.
2025 STORMS
So far in 2025, our area has been hit with four major storms, bringing tornadoes, high winds, and flooding across the communities we serve. These events have tested our electric and fiber-optic systems and our ability to respond. But I couldnt be more proud of how our employees and contractors rose to the occasion. Their commitment and teamwork helped restore power and internet service as quickly and safely as possible, often under challenging conditions.
To give you a sense of how hard theyve worked, our employees have already logged over 6,300 hours of overtime this year. That is nearly as many overtime hours as our employees worked in all of 2024.
The overtime hours do not include the many hours our salaried staff and contractors put in, whose efforts were critical in the restoration process.
THANK YOU TO OUR BOARD AND EMPLOYEES
In closing, I want to thank our board of directors for their guidance and support, and I especially want to thank our dedicated employees who work every day to serve you, our members.
I want you to know that Jackson County REMC is a great cooperative. Its your cooperative, one you can be proud of. I am truly proud to be part of this great organization and also proud to be a fellow member.
At Jackson County REMC, we are guided by our mission: To deliver the advantages of electricity and essential services to our members reliably, economically, and responsibly.
2025 ANNUAL MEETING RECAP
- John Hackman, Paul Elliott, and Curt Wischmeier were re-elected to another three-year term on the board.
- 1, 181 members registered and voted online
- 605 members registered at the Annual Meeting or at the REMC office on Friday
- 906 members and guests attended the Annual Meeting or visited the REMC office on Friday
- Due to inclement weather, the in-person business meeting was canceled, and a virtual business meeting was recorded and posted on our website.
