Heartland Rural Electric Cooperative provides power to more than 11,000 locations across Eastern and Southeast Kansas.
We have offices in Girard, Mound City, and Gas, Kansas.
Office Locations & Hours
- Girard Office - 110 N. Enterprise Drive, Girard KS, 66743
- Mound City Office - 110 S. Sixth Street, Mound City KS, 66056
- Gas Office - 102 E. First Street, Gas KS, 66742
Office hours are 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. Our lobbies are currently closed to the public due to COVID-19.
Management Staff
- CEO - Mark Scheibe
- Director of Finance & Administration - Faith Warden
- Director of Operations - Paul Norris
- Electric System Manager - Tony Washington
- Operations Manager - Dan Avery
- Technology & Integration Manager - Louie Weimer
- Communications Specialist - Doug Graham
To learn more about the cooperative, our board, our rates, and our policies, click on the appropriate section below.
Our History
Heartland Rural Electric Cooperative, Inc. was incorporated December 9, 1996, as a result of a consolidation of United Electric Cooperative, Inc. and Sekan Electric Cooperative Association, Inc. The consolidation officially occurred January 1, 1997. The cooperative is organized as a cooperative, non-profit, membership corporation under Chapter 17, Article 46 of the Kansas Statutes Annotated.
Heartland provides electric service to its members, which are located in parts of 12 different counties in Southeast Kansas. The cooperative installs and maintains its electric system in its single-certified territory established by Kansas law and overseen by the Kansas Corporation Commission. Heartland is not under the jurisdiction of the Kansas Corporation Commission, its members having voted to remove themselves from such jurisdiction.
The main office is located in Girard, Kansas. All administrative and billing functions are conducted at this location along with engineering, construction and maintenance activities. Area offices are maintained in Gas and Mound City. A member service representative staffs each area office. A warehouse with full construction and maintenance activities operates at each area office.
A Board of Directors (currently nine members) governs the cooperative. These directors are resident members of the cooperative. The cooperative is divided into four director districts with directors elected from each district. Directors are elected by the membership of their respective district. Directors may be nominated by petition in accordance with the cooperative bylaws.
Heartland is party to a Restated Mortgage and Security Agreement, dated as of July 1, 2003 with Rural Utilities Service and National Rural Utilities Cooperative Finance Corporation. All properties of Heartland (real, personal, and mixed) are subject to the lien of this mortgage. The mortgage contains provisions that govern many aspects of operation and performance of the cooperative.
The Former Cooperatives
United Electric Cooperative, Inc., headquartered in Iola, Kansas, was formed on September 1, 1975, when Sugar Valley Electric Cooperative Association, Inc. of Mound City, Kansas merged with Cooperative Electric Power and Light Company, Inc. of Iola, Kansas. Sekan, headquartered in Girard, Kansas, merged with United in 1996 to form Heartland.
Dates of Incorporation:
Sugar Valley Electric Cooperative Association, Inc. - June 5, 1940
Cooperative Electric Power & Light Company, Inc. - April 16, 1937
Sekan Electric Cooperative Association, Inc. - April 19, 1939
Contact members of the HREC Board of Directors through Heartland's Girard office or at their home addresses listed below
|
Ernest Troth |
Dean Davied |
Donald Davied |
|
|
H. H. Stockebrand |
Larry Lindberg |
|
Ronald Taylor |
Bernard O'Brien |
Steve McFarland |
The Rules and Regulations are established by the Cooperative's Board of Directors and guide the day-to-day operations of the Cooperative. Topics included are details about memberships and the different types of service available, Heartland's policy on deposits and credits, billing procedures and payment policies, disconnection and reconnection policies, right-of-way and easment rules, regulations on Heartland and member obligations in service, and other legal regulations.
The Bylaws of Heartland Rural Electric Cooperative Inc. provide the foundation for the cooperative and its service to the members. Topics include membership, the rights and liabilities of members, meetings, the Board of Directors, boardmeetings, officers, financial guidance, and other information.
Capital Credits
Do Heartland members get money back from the cooperative?
YES! Each year since the consolidation in 1997, Heartland has sent hundreds of thousands of dollars in capital credit retirements to its members.
Heartland Rural Electric Cooperative is a non-profit electric utility, which means the co-op is owned by those it serves & not by private investors.
What are capital credits and why do I receive them as a co-op member?
Revenue collected from members is called patronage. As a non-profit electric utility, Heartland needs only to cover the cost of yearly operations, and keep sufficient cash on hand for capital needs. After meeting the cooperative's financial obligations, margins are allocated to the members as capital credits.
As a co-op member, you share in the margins of Heartland. The longer you use the service and the more service you use, the more capital credits you accumulate. The actual cash amount (retirement) you receive is determined by the cooperative Board of Directors and is usually a percentage of your total usage amount.
Who is eligible to receive capital credits?
If you receive service from Heartland, you are eligible to receive capital credits, as part of your membership agreement. Members of the Heartland Board of Directors want the capital credit retirement to be timely for all members. The current retirement plan is often referred to as "first in, first out" and "last in, first out" meaning both longtime members and new members receive checks. As a result, new and longtime members are eligible to share in the benefits of Capital Credit retirements.
When will I receive my share of capital credit retirements?
Each year, the Board of Directors approves the portion of capital credits to be retired. Because all members and former members are eligible to receive capital credit retirements, it is necessary to properly budget for this expense. By retiring a portion at a time, the co-op is able to maintain financial stability while demonstrating a key benefit of cooperative ownership to its members. Capital credit retirement checks are traditionally mailed out to current and former co-op members in early December each year.
How does Heartland use member patronage?
The co-op uses the money for the following:
- To maintain adequate cash flow to meet current expenses
- To preserve enough equity in the company to meet banks’ debt to equity requirements and lower the co-op cost of borrowing money
- To reinvest millions of dollars in system improvements, new services and the capital budget
How much has Heartland paid back to members?
Heartland has retired nearly $13 million to its members since its incorporation in 1997.
I received a capital credit statement from Heartland in the mail, what is it and what does it mean?
Each year, Heartland issues the members a statement outlining the total amount of capital credits their account has accumulated during the prior years of service. This is called an allocation statement and is sent as a courtesy so that you may be kept informed of your vested interest in the co-op.
If I should decide to move, what can I do to ensure I receive a capital credit retirement check?
If you are currently a member and have plans to move out of the Heartland service area, you need to make sure our office has your forwarding address. This will allow us to keep you informed, and send you capital credit retirement checks.
How can I check to see if I have unclaimed capital credits?
Unfortunately, many members leave our service area without leaving us their forwarding address. As a result, we are unable to contact them when their retirement checks have been processed leaving thousands of dollars in unclaimed capital credit retirements each year.
Heartland is required by law to publish a list of all unclaimed capital credit retirements in a newspaper of general circulation. This list is published annually in the Heartland Heartbeat Newsletter.
If you suspect you may have unclaimed capital credits with Heartland or you are making a claim on behalf of a deceased individual, you need to call our office and speak with a member service representative.