Manager’s Message — December 2021

Dear Members,

Merry Christmas and happy holidays! We hope you have a happy and safe holiday season.

The California Public Utilities Commission will vote on California Advanced Services Fund grant resolutions at its December 16, meeting. Plumas-Sierra Telecommunications submitted four applications to the program. If funded, they will bring broadband services to some of the hardest-to-reach areas of our region including Spring Garden, Greenhorn, Old Truckee Road in Sierraville, and several areas of Lassen County.

Expansion of broadband services funded by the previous CASF awards is nearly complete. Areas of Mohawk Vista, C Road, Johnsville, and parts of Gold Run are open for installations. In addition, Plumas Eureka Estates is open for installations. You can check availability for your location at www.pst.coop 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.

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

Return to Normal From PG&E

As I write this in mid-November, we have been informed that PG&E has a tentative date of December 17, for the completion of its power line that will allow us to have our primary transmission feedback in service. When we put out conservation notices, we greatly appreciate your help in reducing usage to avoid rolling blackouts. As most of you may know, our primary feed from PG&E burned down July 13. We have been on our backup system and generators ever since.

Getting our primary feedback in service will be a great relief to our hardworking System Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) operators who have been staffing the SCADA center 24/7 for more than four months to keep the lights on. If you know them or see them, please thank Jason Harston, Matt Brubaker, Katie Willis, and Tim Retallack for their hard work and dedication.

Eyes & Ears

We spend a tremendous amount of time and money grooming our rights-of-way and maintaining our equipment, but it is a neverending 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 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 differ 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 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 2021.

Members in good standing will receive capital credit refunds on their November bills, which are received in December. If less than $50, the refund will appear as a credit on your bill. If your refund is $50 or more, a check will be mailed later in December.

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 email me.

Sincerely,

Bob Marshall
General Manager