NHEC Board Joins Us In Support for Broadband!

Twags · 08-24-2020, 02:04 PM

Last spring many of you responded to the call to change the New Hampshire Electric Cooperative’s bylaws to add “facilitating broadband” to the Coop’s stated purposes. Now your support is urgently needed again.

In the NHEC’s annual election in June, 64.4 percent of participating Coop members voted to add “facilitating broadband” to the company’s charter, falling just shy of the required two-thirds needed to change the bylaws.

Within a week the Coop’s board – which had opposed members’ broadband petition – did a 180-degree turnabout and decided to go into the broadband business. NHEC now aims to guarantee broadband access to all its 85,000 members, a project it says will take several years.

But there’s a problem. In setting up its new broadband arm, NHEC has discovered a bylaws change is still needed to permit its board to spend on “other goods and services” beyond its core electrical business. Without it, a membership vote would be needed for every broadband expenditure – a cumbersome process that takes months.

The NHEC board has unanimously decided to call a special election – the first in two decades – asking members to approve the needed bylaws change. A two-thirds majority is required. If the vote falls short, the broadband project will be dead in the water.

This time the grass-roots group that started the whole process and the Coop’s board/management are on the same side. I strongly urge those of you who are Coop members to vote in favor of the necessary bylaws changes, giving NHEC the flexibility it needs to execute this vital project.

Many rural electric cooperatives around the nation are already into broadband. Moreover, NHEC says adding broadband to its portfolio will not increase your electric rates. In fact, it says broadband “has the potential to reduce the cost of electricity service by creating new sources of non-electric revenues and potential cost savings.”

Coop members will be getting ballots in the mail soon, bearing a code you can use to vote online as an alternative to the US mail. Voting will span a 30-day period in September-October, with results announced at a special membership meeting on October 20 at 10:00 AM. For more detail on the proposed bylaws change go to www.nhec.com/broadband .

Please respond once again so your previous efforts, and the Coop’s, will not have been in vain.

longislander · 08-24-2020, 02:34 PM

Send this to the COOP directors:

https://www.hub66.com/

https://www.hub66.com/municipal-information/

https://www.hub66.com/new-customers/

"We are currently offering or launching Wireless Fiber service in:

Sandwich, NH
Moultonborough, NH
Tamworth, NH
Meredith, NH
Plymouth, NH
Gilford, NH
various Lake Winnipesaukee islands
Hampton, NH
Salisbury, MA
Winchendon, MA"

08-24-2020, 02:04 PM	#1
Twags Junior Member Join Date: Apr 2014 Posts: 14 Thanks: 2 Thanked 8 Times in 6 Posts	NHEC Board Joins Us In Support for Broadband! Last spring many of you responded to the call to change the New Hampshire Electric Cooperative’s bylaws to add “facilitating broadband” to the Coop’s stated purposes. Now your support is urgently needed again. In the NHEC’s annual election in June, 64.4 percent of participating Coop members voted to add “facilitating broadband” to the company’s charter, falling just shy of the required two-thirds needed to change the bylaws. Within a week the Coop’s board – which had opposed members’ broadband petition – did a 180-degree turnabout and decided to go into the broadband business. NHEC now aims to guarantee broadband access to all its 85,000 members, a project it says will take several years. But there’s a problem. In setting up its new broadband arm, NHEC has discovered a bylaws change is still needed to permit its board to spend on “other goods and services” beyond its core electrical business. Without it, a membership vote would be needed for every broadband expenditure – a cumbersome process that takes months. The NHEC board has unanimously decided to call a special election – the first in two decades – asking members to approve the needed bylaws change. A two-thirds majority is required. If the vote falls short, the broadband project will be dead in the water. This time the grass-roots group that started the whole process and the Coop’s board/management are on the same side. I strongly urge those of you who are Coop members to vote in favor of the necessary bylaws changes, giving NHEC the flexibility it needs to execute this vital project. Many rural electric cooperatives around the nation are already into broadband. Moreover, NHEC says adding broadband to its portfolio will not increase your electric rates. In fact, it says broadband “has the potential to reduce the cost of electricity service by creating new sources of non-electric revenues and potential cost savings.” Coop members will be getting ballots in the mail soon, bearing a code you can use to vote online as an alternative to the US mail. Voting will span a 30-day period in September-October, with results announced at a special membership meeting on October 20 at 10:00 AM. For more detail on the proposed bylaws change go to www.nhec.com/broadband . Please respond once again so your previous efforts, and the Coop’s, will not have been in vain.

The Following User Says Thank You to Twags For This Useful Post:
FlyingScot (08-24-2020)

08-24-2020, 02:34 PM	#2
longislander Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Moultonborough Posts: 501 Thanks: 43 Thanked 93 Times in 70 Posts	Send this to the COOP directors: https://www.hub66.com/ https://www.hub66.com/municipal-information/ https://www.hub66.com/new-customers/ "We are currently offering or launching Wireless Fiber service in: Sandwich, NH Moultonborough, NH Tamworth, NH Meredith, NH Plymouth, NH Gilford, NH various Lake Winnipesaukee islands Hampton, NH Salisbury, MA Winchendon, MA"