Dear LPEA Members, 

As we move into March, I want to take a moment to reflect on the valuable conversations and feedback we’ve heard from so many of you over the past month. Your voices are at the heart of our efforts, and I truly appreciate the time you've taken to share your thoughts with me and the directors at events we have hosted across our territory. 

One of the key themes we’ve heard is the desire for greater clarity around our rate design, as well as the importance of ensuring that our most at-risk members are considered in any changes we make. Many of you have expressed concerns about making ends meet, and as a not-for-profit cooperative, we are committed to keeping your needs front and center.  I want to address that directly: we hear you. Unlike investor-owned utilities, our focus is solely on serving you, our members, and not on maximizing corporate profit. We understand the impact of rate changes and don’t take that lightly. 

As one of our directors put it, “We couldn’t have done any better or worse” with the rate design. That’s a sentiment that resonates with us, and we believe the changes we’ve made strike a balanced approach. The increase to the residential base charge and the lowered energy charges were designed with you in mind—putting more control in your hands while ensuring that all members contribute fairly to maintaining and improving the grid we all rely on. This approach also helps us build the long-term stability necessary to continue investing in our energy system. 

In developing our rate design proposals, we’ve made sure they are in alignment with our cost of service study, which reflects the full cost of delivering and maintaining power for each of our members. While we’ve done our best to hold down operational costs, we can no longer absorb the cumulative effects of the more than five years of inflation since our last rate adjustment. The proposed rate changes, which average a 7.7% increase, are necessary to keep up with the more than 30% inflation the electric industry has experienced over the past five years. 

We are proud of our staff’s fiscal responsibility, but the reality is that we have to adjust to the rate of inflation to avoid jeopardizing the future of our cooperative. While we know any increase is difficult, we believe this adjustment is both just and reasonable, ensuring that we can continue providing reliable, affordable service while making essential investments for the future. 

As we continue on this journey together, I am reminded of a quote by John F. Kennedy: "The time to repair the roof is when the sun is shining." Our cooperative’s long-term success requires careful planning and proactive decisions today, so we can continue to thrive and invest in ourselves in the future. 

Thank you for your thoughtful questions and ongoing engagement in this important discussion. The Board of Directors will vote on the proposed rate tariff on March 26, and we will continue to keep you updated on the progress. We remain committed to serving you and are here to support you through these changes. 

Sincerely, 
 
Chris Hansen