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Yes. That is the problem with a class action, or any action against a co-op. They defend themselves with your money, and they do not care how much it costs, or how long it takes. They will hire subject matter experts from all over the country, file as many motions as the Judge will allow them to get away with, interlocutory appeals, direct appeals, and every costly delaying tactic they can dream of. Then when they make their annual report, they tell everyone that their is not enough money for a payout or credit that year, due to the cost of the ridiculous suit brought by a few dissatisfied shareholders. Now, they have made you the bad guy in the community. That is why you need a legislative solution. If the politicians in Raleigh get enough emails, letters, and phone calls, they will do something. And if you can get the media involved, especially on issues of transparency and Director and management pay, you have a very good chance of winning.

Great post, Fairplay. It would be refreshing to see co-ops forced to return to original principles through legal recourse, but would the legal fees be paid from co-op (our) funds? That would REALLY be an insult and double whammy.

This old man rant was typed months prior to this thread, but somewhat relates. The Higher Education portion relates to board members.

I’m a lucky retiree from electric power generation, transmission and distribution, after being fascinated from then on by watching my uncle wire a water pump when we got running water. I've always felt electricity is one of the main reasons for our standard of living. A much needed, controlled monopoly. Controlled.

In the fifties/sixties, a co-op manager made about three or four times the pay of a lineman or technician. That seems to equate to about $300,000+ dollars a year for a local lineman compared to the main honcho’s pay today. A field engineer made almost equal pay to the manager back then. The main office had less glitz than our present liquor store.

The local co-op maintains the grid, and purchases almost 100% of our power from others. Basically, a reseller of a product made by others, like Walmart or other retailers. The equipment works fine, and lasts a long time. There are still transformers chugging away since the 1940s.

Although living elsewhere until about ten years ago, I've glanced at some of the "elections" when reading the local paper while visiting since the late sixties. If I remember correctly, the board has always had teachers/educational administrators with education degrees from ASU.

Due to closings and downsizings in industry and advice from some jobless engineers who fled to education, mainly Community Colleges, I headed back for a graduate education degree. What a joke. Basically a Good Old Boy's and Girl’s club. Totally dependent upon tax dollars, with little practical knowledge about anything. It was largely about worshipping long ago European educational heroes, socializing, and maintaining control of their middle class, tax-supported careers in education. Educators at all levels still have careers with early retirement, pensions, and retiree health benefits. Those head-in-the-clouds Higher Education departments throughout the NC University System have maintained control of K-12 local education for decades. What do they know about an electric co-op’s operations? Any career government employee, especially multi-generational, lives outside the realities of most. Higher Education just gave themselves greater security via the latest two billion dollar bond referendum.

Even Duke Power eliminated pension plans and reduced benefits to essential employees. Government/Education/Military is about all that is left that resembles the old definition of career. The only career that’s ever been here. The only one that’s experienced growth. All at taxpayer’s expense.

The name change from BREMCO to Blue Ridge Energy reflects the even greater monopolization to include propane and other sources. They’ve already driven out competitors.

Another insult is their feel-good, hearken back to the good-old days propaganda magazine with the beaming countenances that remind me of old snake-oil salesmen and also too, the questionable advertisements in that rag. That magazine may also be a money-maker, given the number of advertisements. Billboards and "community involvement" abound from your friendly electric/propane/fuel supplier. To sell a product, without competition, that you will not do without. Very nice, expensive headquarters. I don’t remember any member questionnaires about somewhat lavish buildings or management/board expensive perks. Sounds almost like a drug dealer with a stranglehold on supply/distribution. Or bloated universities and government.

I drove up the mountain for decades, watching main transmission, distribution, retail lines, transformers and other equipment age along with me, until finally a major transmission line project is now underway.

The control of this necessary monopoly, and its original principles have been lost.

The out-of-control salary of the local co-op manager is just another example of vulgar extremes in workers wages versus top-level managers in industry and still-going-strong education/government career employment nationwide. Look at the pay of the local Community College’s President, both now and past. Compare that to their lower level employees. Then compare the lower level education/government employees to the local private sector. What have those expensive institutions actually provided to the local general population for the last sixty years? Fighting and scrambling for gov’t careers isn’t about wanting to serve the public.

For years, my wife and I have often traveled outside the artsy/fartsy tourist traps and gentrified areas, to look instead at the forgotten in-between. We have visited places we knew years ago. In a sea of infrastructure and overall decay, government sponsored look-good, from fire departments, colleges and universities, parks and recreation, and other tax-supported projects seem all that is left in once proud areas.

It’s a mess. Even the local, mainly escapees from elsewhere, keep government honest editorialists online in various media in this area are mostly fortunate recipients of tax-supported careers and early retirements. I enjoy their company at local events, and hope anonymity prevents me from being shunned. Those of us from the Golden Era are dropping like flies, so soon, it won’t matter. I no longer mind being old, and that sentiment is shared among the few of us in my Non-Government Careers Old Farts Club, which will soon disappear due to no new members.

Thats excellent research fairplay. Its even better that two of the suits are from SC, kinda close by so to speak. I would really like to see something done about the salary of Dougie. There is no telling what kind of parachute those clowns have given him. I have associates tell me from other co-ops that if you were to question a board member about pay, benefits, or the perks they become agitated and never answer your question.

I knew a man that once managed to get on the ballot for a board position. He campaigned hard and was well known and liked in Ashe and Watauga at the time. I heard him say that on the night they counted the ballots, the sitting board counted the ballots behind closed doors and wouldn’t let challengers in the room to witness it. Don’t know if they still do it this way, but I wouldn’t be surprised.

You gave them authority when you joined the co-op. And you’ve received a ballot but they look like junk mail. And the ballots say if you don’t return it the board will vote your proxy

No electrification without representation!!!
Boycott BREMCO!!!!!
We don't need parks,
We don't need roads,
We don't need 'lectric neither!!!1

Actually, the way it works Pappy is if you don’t return the ballot, the board by default gets to vote your proxy

Pay the bill, keep the lights on. Life goes on!!

we are doing something. We are educating the public on how BREMCO cheats the customers. It’s the only option available.

So quit complaining and do SOMETHING

Those question marks fit you. Were you around a few years ago this site set off a fire storm with the newspaper and bremco. Bremco had to send their pretty little blond relations chick to beg the newspaper not to print the stories this site uncovered. So to say this site is not read and our opinions are not take seriously you must be a first grader.

Well once again you feel you must insult...
But complaining doesn’t change anything, action does.
So if a change to the system needs to be made...DO something

THAT MAN IS HONEST!

Quit complaining about the only power company in the area, that is supposed to be owned by the customers, rigging elections and paying themselves high salaries? Wow, you are Stu. pid.

So quit complaining

Stupy, you can’t do anything. Even if you get on the ballot, the vote is rigged. The board gets to cast all the proxy votes and they vote them for their chosen candidate.