Plumas-Sierra Rural Electric Cooperative > PSREC and PST COVID-19 Information

PSREC and PST COVID-19 Information

At Plumas-Sierra Rural Electric Cooperative and Plumas-Sierra Telecommunications, the health and safety of our members and employees is a top priority. We are monitoring advice from the Centers for Disease Control, World Health Organization, and our state and local governments and will adjust to practices as needed to follow their guidance. We remain committed to meeting the needs of our members, local businesses and communities and we are continuing to provide power and internet services to our members. If outages do occur, our crews are ready to respond.

If you have been economically impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, please contact our billing department at 530-832-4261 or billing@psrec.coop as soon as possible to make arrangements for paying your bills.

Assisting our members online and by phone

While PSREC and PST’s office is closed, you can utilize one of our other fee-free options to pay your electric and internet bills or manage your account. If you need assistance, please call our member services staff at 530-832-4261.

If you have been economically impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, please contact our billing department at 530-832-4261 or billing@psrec.coop as soon as possible to make arrangements for paying your bills.

Secured Drop Box

Payments can be placed in the drop box located next to the front door at our office in Portola (73233 State Route 70, Portola). Doyle Payless located at 745 Rachel Drive, remains open for payments at this time (exact amounts only) but Margie’s Book Nook in Susanville is closed until further notice. During this time of the COVID-19 pandemic, we encourage members to pay by phone or online whenever possible.

Pay by Phone

Our automated pay-by-phone system is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week at 530-832-4261. Call with your account number and follow the voice prompts.

Online Account and Mobile App

Visit our home page to set up your online account in SmartHub if you have not done so already. Log in any time from your computer, tablet or smartphone to view your billing history, make payments, manage payment methods, set up auto pay, check your usage, go paperless, and more.

Members Impacted by COVID-19

Plumas-Sierra Rural Electric Cooperative’s member services representatives will be available throughout this time to assist members who are impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

If you have been economically impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, please contact our billing department at 530-832-4261 or billing@psrec.coop as soon as possible to make arrangements for paying your bills.

Assistance Resources

With the recent COVID-19 stimulus legislation an additional $900M has been approved for the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program to help low- and moderate- income members pay their utility bills. Contact information for the local LIHEAP program administrators can be found on our assistance page.

There is also a $349B Paycheck Protection Program that provides federal government loan forgiveness (under Small Business Administration (SBA) Section 7(a) loans) for small businesses to pay up to eight weeks of utility bills (including electric, telephone, and internet), mortgage interest and rent, and payroll costs, among other uses. Information on the Paycheck Protection Program can be found at: https://www.sba.gov/funding-programs/loans/paycheck-protection-program-ppp.

Below is a list of organizations in Plumas, Lassen, Sierra and Washoe counties where members can get and give resources to keep our communities strong during these trying times.

Plumas County Community Development Commission – 530-283-2466

Lassen Economic Development Corporation – 530-256-3531

Nevada Home Energy Assistance and Crisis Intervention Program – 775-684-0730

Plumas Crisis and Intervention – 530-283-5515

Portola Family Resource Center – 530-832-1827

Fort Sage Family Resource Center – 530-827-3007

The Salvation Army Social Service Center – 530-257-0314

Sierra County Family Resource Center – 530-993-1110

California Tribal TANF Partnership – 530-284-7757

Community Assistance Network – 530-283-0262

Eastern Plumas County Assistance Network Food Bank – 530-832-4570

Salvation Army – Portola – 530-832-1827

High Sierra Family Services – 530-993-1110

Western Sierra Food Bank – 530-289-3644 or 530-289-3632

Crossroads Ministries – 530-251-0701

Lassen WORKS and Social Services – 530-251-8152

Alliance for Workforce Development – 530-283-1606

Lassen Career Network – 530-257-5057

PSREC and PST’s Response to COVID-19

In recognition of the public health emergency surrounding the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19), PSREC and PST urge members to follow the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) prevention and containment recommendations [https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html]. They include regular and thorough handwashing, disinfecting frequently touched surfaces, and keeping a distance of six feet or more from others.

The health and well being of PSREC and PST employees also are of the utmost importance. They, too, are urged to follow CDC’s recommendations, as well as stay home from work if they are ill.

As PSREC and PST join the vast effort to safeguard public health from coronavirus, customers can continue to count on us to provide reliable, economical and safe power and internet services.

For additional information about COVID-19 and how to protect yourself, visit the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention at www.cdc.gov. Additionally, the State of California has a webpage dedicated to updates on COVID-19 in the state that can be found at https://covid19.ca.gov/.

PST Internet Installation Information

At Plumas-Sierra, the health and safety of our customers and employees is our priority. We are taking a number of steps to limit the opportunity for exposure to illness for our customers and employees.

We can safely install internet services in an attached garage under certain circumstances. If PST is not able to install service, we are placing customers on a list to schedule installation at a later date. If crews arrive and find that the criteria for installation are not met, a $99 truck roll fee may be charged.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, our installation schedule is booked out approximately one month, and subject to future change.

Criteria for current internet service installation:

Attached garage with area safe from weather, moisture, direct sunlight, hazards and power where the PST equipment would be placed.

If these criteria are met, PST will schedule an installation and provide up to 300 feet of CAT5 cable, extending from where the modem will land to the customer provided router in the house. If you have a general idea of how many feet you’ll need before the installers arrive, that will be helpful. This is a complimentary service that isn’t typically offered; if the provided CAT5 cable is damaged by the customer, it will be the responsibility of the customer to replace the CAT5 cable. PST will charge a $99 per hour Service Call Fee to replace or repair the cable if requested by the customer.

If you have questions regarding these measures, please contact us at 530-832-4261 or info@pst.coop.