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The Mission of Somerset Rural Electric Cooperative,
Inc., is to provide reliable electric service and seek ways to improve the
quality of life of its members and their neighbors.
On May 11, 1935, President Franklin Roosevelt signed
Executive Order 7037 establishing the Rural Electrification Administration
(REA). The goal was to bring
the benefits of electricity to rural America.
It was early 1939 when initial steps were taken that
led to the organization of a rural electric cooperative, but it wasn’t
until March of 1940 that the first power lines were actually energized.
The actual incorporation was signed on March 8, 1939,
and was filed in the Department of State on March 14, 1939.
There were nine incorporators.
The By-Laws were adopted at a meeting on March 21, 1939.
By April 24, 1939, a total of 867 members were signed
with 661 reported as having paid the $5 membership fee.
The first employees that were hired included eight
men as a right-of-way crew and two clerical workers.
In 1940, the average monthly use per member was 32
kilowatt hours. In 2000, the
average monthly use per member is 860 kilowatt hours.
There have been many changes over the years, but the
Cooperative continues to be operated in the same way as it was at the very
beginning. A nine-member
board of directors continues to set the policies for the operation.
A General Manager and staff of thirty-seven employees carry out the
day-to-day operations of the Cooperative.
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