Annual Meeting Postponed

The Central Electric Cooperative Board of Directors announced in late March its decision to postpone the upcoming 79th annual member meeting scheduled for April 10 until further notice due to the rising coronavirus risks and concerns for the safety and health of co-op members and employees.

The decision coincides with a wave of community events canceled throughout Central Oregon following Gov. Kate Brown’s announcement prohibiting large gatherings. In response, Deschutes County Fair and Expo Center has shuttered all of its early spring events, including CEC’s annual meeting.

Rescheduling the annual meeting postpones the board elections for District 2 (Tumalo), District 3 (Madras) and District 5 (Terrebonne). CEC’s bylaws state uncontested elections are to be voted on by voice vote at the annual meeting. A contested election—in this case, District 5—will be conducted by a ballot that can be mailed or physically delivered to one of our service centers or delivered at the annual meeting. Once the annual meeting is rescheduled, the election’s protocols and timelines for mailing out the ballots for District 5’s election as prescribed by the bylaws will restart.

Central Electric is focused on maintaining a healthy workforce, and has taken precautionary steps to ensure key personnel—such as lineworkers and customer service representatives—are available so we can continue to provide you excellent service.

To help limit unnecessary person-to-person contact, I strongly encourage members to consider options to avoid having to come into our service centers. You can sign up for SmartHub—see pages 4 and 5 n this issue—a web and mobile app that allows you to pay your bills online securely. Should you want to use Smart Hub, please go to our website, www.cec.coop, and click on “Register for Online Access.” You may also download the SmartHub app through the Apple App Store or the Google Play Store.

The other option is to drop off your payment in our locked drop boxes in front of our Bend, Redmond and Sisters service centers.

Central Electric understands the adverse economic impacts this health crisis is having on some of our members. Therefore, we will temporarily suspend disconnections and late fees for non-payment. If you need to make a payment arrangement, please contact CEC to set up a payment plan.

Should you need additional financial assistance, please inquire about CEC’s Project Helping Hand. The program provides bill payment assistance to members who demonstrate need. Donations are raised by fellow co-op members who have agreed to round up their electric bill to the nearest dollar. If you would like to join the 1,800 members who already contribute, please sign up today at www.cec.coop under the community tab, or call CEC to enroll.

If you have any questions about any of the topics discussed, please call 541-548-2144. A CEC customer service representative is ready to assist you.