Manager’s Message — December 2020

Dear Members:

Merry Christmas and happy holidays! We hope you have a happy and safe holiday season. If you or your family are decorating for the holidays, please remember to not overload outlets and circuits, and to always look up for overhead lines before installing any tall features or exhibits.

Telecommunications News

The California Public Utilities Commission will vote on California Advanced Services Fund grant resolutions at its December 17, meeting. Plumas-Sierra Telecommunications submitted six applications to the program. If funded, they will bring broadband services to some of the hardest-to-reach areas of our region. We will post information on our website the moment we know about the grants.

Expansion of broadband services funded by the 2019 CASF program is going well. We recently opened areas of Mohawk Vista, C Road, Johnsville, and parts of Gold Run for installations. In addition, we are opening parts of Plumas Eureka Estates for installations. You can check availability for your location at Plumas-Sierra Telecommunications or by calling (530) 832-4261.

PST’s internet services are unlimited, so you don’t have to worry about data caps. We offer speeds up to 1 gigabyte per second on our fiber-optic service.

PST has updated its packages for coax and fiber optic services to remain competitive and offer the best service in the area. Coax now has one standard package of 25 Mbps download by 3 Mbps upload for $75 per month. For residential fiber, our offerings are:

• 50 Mbps download by 10 Mbps upload for $79 per month
• 100 Mbps download by 20 Mbps upload for $99 per month
• 250 Mbps download by 50 Mbps upload for $149 per month
• 500 Mbps download by 75 Mbps upload for $199 per month
• 1 Gbps download by 100 Mbps upload for $299 per month

PST has upgraded its wireless broadcast points to improve service for customers in Susanville, Janesville, Herlong, Milford, and Doyle. With these upgrades, customers will see more consistent speeds, especially during peak times. These upgrades will also allow PST to offer higher package speeds in the near future. As these upgrades are performed, customers will see little or no impact to their service, with the exception of a minor five to 10-minute outage as the equipment is swapped out.

To learn more about our services or get on our interest list, please visit Plumas-Sierra Telecommunications or call us at (530) 832-4261.

Eyes and Ears

We spend a tremendous amount of time and money grooming our rights-of-way and maintaining our equipment, but it is a never-ending job, and we can always use your help. Our members often let us know when there are problems with our system.

We have a remote, rural power grid with only six customers per mile of power line. When you let us know you think there may be an equipment malfunction or if something looks out of place on the line, you help us prevent fires and outages.

Thank you, and please continue to call us if you think something isn’t right. We have operators available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year at (530) 832-4261.

Capital Credits

One way electric cooperatives are different from investor-owned utilities is each cooperative depends on its members to provide the necessary funding, or equity, for operation.

Inspired by the idea that people can pool their resources to get things done—a fact that hasn’t changed since PSREC was formed in 1937 by a group of people who banded together to bring electricity to the countryside—your membership ensures access to reliable resources and services, a cornerstone of economic opportunity.

The mechanism by which members contribute equity is known as capital credits, which are determined at the close of each business year by allocating the PSREC’s net profits to each member based on the amount of electricity the member purchased.

Capital credit returns are evaluated annually by PSREC’s board of directors. The board has determined PSREC will distribute a refund to members in 2020.

Members in good standing will receive capital credit refunds on their December bills, which are received in January. If less than $100, the refund will appear as a credit on your bill. If your refund is $100 or more, a check will be mailed in January.

Thank you for your support of PSREC and the common needs of our community!

If you have any questions, please contact me at (530) 832-4261 ext. 6076, or by email.

Sincerely,

Bob Marshall
General Manager