Each month your electric bill has a base rate charge listed under CURRENT BILL INFORMATION and Distribution. You will find the base charge listed on the back side of your bill.
The base charge is a set monthly charge, like a monthly access fee you might pay for your phone or cable service. Regardless of how many kilowatt-hours are used, each member pays a fair share of the cost of having dependable service ready for you to use.
The base charge is a recurring monthly charge that assists in recovering a portion of the fixed costs associated with the delivery of electric service to each meter location. These costs are incurred by the cooperative regardless of the amount of energy that is consumed at each meter location.
The base charge component includes a portion of the distribution wire expense for metering, transformers, and general operations. Also covered in the base charge is rights of way maintenance, billing, labor, accounting, member care, and meter reading. It’s everything it takes to bring electricity to you. The last time the base charge increased was 2013. Beginning with the February bill, members will see an increase in the base charge amount.
| BASE RATE CHANGES | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rate | Rate Type | Classification | Old Base Charge | New Base Charge |
| 1 | Single Phase | General Service | $40 | $42.50 |
| 5 | 3-Phase | General Service | $75 | $80 |
| 7 | Single Phase | PrePaid Advantage | $40 | $42.50 |
| 8 | 3-Phase | Electric Heat | $75 | $80 |
| 18 | Single Phase | Large Use | $55 | $58 |
| 20 | Single Phase | Electric Heat | $50 | $53 |
The base charge is also influenced by the number of members the co-op has per mile of line. EIEC has an average of 3 members per mile of line. This is significantly less than the large investor-owned utilities in our communities who average 32 customers per mile of line, resulting in slightly higher operating costs for EIEC. On average, other Illinois cooperatives have 5 members per mile of line.
Even though EIEC has less members per mile of line, the cooperative has always found innovative ways to have competitive rates, while still providing you with safe and reliable electric service. The chart below shows by rate category the changes in the base rate charge beginning with the February bill.
How does the base rate charge of Eastern Illini compare with other electric co-ops in Illinois?
There are 23 other electric cooperatives in Illinois. The base rate charge for each of these other co-ops varies as does the rate per kWh. The highest base rate charge in the state is $65.00 and the lowest is $18.00. The average base rate charge among Illinois cooperatives is just under $38.77.
What can I do to manage my energy use and my monthly electric bill?
SmartHub is a free service from Eastern Illini that gives you insight into your energy by day, month, and year. SmartHub also provides the ability to pay your bill online, report an outage, and compare usage over time.
Give us a call at 1-800-824-5102 with any base rate charge change questions or any other questions about your account.