Cooperatives are member-owned utilities established to provide electric service to rural America.  There are many differences between an electric cooperative and a utility that is owned and operated by outside investors.  Each customer of the cooperative is a member who has special rights.

A cooperative is organized as a not-for-profit utility.  It does not sell stock and is not under pressure to earn profits for absentee stockholders.

If a cooperative collects more money than it needs to operate, it reinvests those margins into the system—keeping its need to borrow high-interest capital to a minimum.  The board of directors determines when those margins are refunded—in the form of patronage dividends—to the people who paid for the electricity in the year the margin occurred.

Electric cooperatives serve many rural, less-densely populated areas compared to other utilities.  Providing electric service in these areas tends to be more difficult and costly than in urban areas.

Electric cooperatives are service-oriented, locally owned and governed by member-elected directors, providing service at the lowest possible costs.

Anyone who buys electricity from an electric cooperative is a member; all members share ownership of the utility and have a voice in its operation.

Each member has one vote in the election of the cooperative’s board of directors and in any other decision brought up a the cooperative’s annual meeting.

Directors of the cooperative are members of the utility who serve without salary, except for a per diem and expenses to cover their out-of-pocket costs in serving the cooperative.  The board of directors hire a manger to take charge of operating the cooperative for the benefit of its members.

Cooperative officials work to improve the quality of life in rural communities they serve.  Many cooperative employees volunteer countless hours for community activities. 
All electric cooperatives in Iowa pay property and sales taxes, just like other businesses.

Cooperatives promote the economic development of Iowa’s small communities by making Iowa more attractive to potential employers, recruiting industries and helping local people start and expand their businesses.