There are massive turbines that generate the electricity you use. There are tens of thousands of miles of wire that carry it to your homes and businesses. The knowledge, experience and labor of hundreds of men and women assure those electrons arrive efficiently and safely whenever you flip a switch.
But the most powerful asset we have is the cooperative story. Although we are member-owned utilities and directly accountable to the people we serve, nearly everything we do is affected by our elected representatives. It is sometimes necessary to speak up for ourselves and the rural communities we serve. Over the decades, we have told our story to hundreds of policymakers, helping them understand our members’ needs in every corner of the state. It’s a special moment when our message suddenly clicks—when “the lights come on,” if you’ll pardon the turn of phrase.
One of the best examples came in the early 1960s. The federal government wanted to fund a hydroelectric dam in the Savannah River Valley. Cooperatives supported the project, known as Trotter Shoals, and wanted it to remain in public hands. Cooperative members needed the low-cost power the project would create. However, investor-owned utilities objected to federal funding, sparking a debate that divided South Carolina’s top leaders for years.
In 1963, powerful U.S. Sen. Strom Thurmond opposed the Trotter Shoals project, but by 1976, after lobbying from the cooperatives, Thurmond was a champion of what became the Richard B. Russell Dam.
“There’s a tremendous demand coming for electric power,” Thurmond told Living in South Carolina that year. “We should take every step possible to meet that demand.”
S.C. policymakers have long grappled with the question of how to meet the power demands of a growing state. That was certainly the case in 2012 as I sat in a room with U.S. Rep. James Clyburn, cooperative leaders, environmentalists and representatives from investor-owned utilities. We were asking for changes in federal law to pave the way for more energy capacity.
Everyone had their own ideas for how to solve the problem. Investor-owned utilities wanted to build big power plants that would generate a guaranteed profit. Environmentalists wanted more investment in renewables.
We explained that cooperatives serve South Carolina’s persistent poverty counties, noting that the average cooperative member was 50% more likely to live below the poverty line. Our message was simple: We would support policy that gave those communities a chance to prosper.
As the discussion continued, Clyburn and I shared a moment of sustained eye contact. Then, the competing voices finally went quiet as he began to speak. I knew the light had come on for him.
“I care about my people,” he said. “I’m going to do what I can to help them.”
Clyburn had always been a friend to cooperatives, but that day he became a champion of the cooperative movement. He understood that our people depend on us to keep their lights on at a price they can afford. Since then, the congressman has helped turn the Help My House energy efficiency program that co-ops pioneered in South Carolina into the national Rural Energy Savings Program. Well before COVID-19, he listened to us about the need for high-speed internet access in rural areas, and he helped secure funding for broadband expansion in cooperative territories.
In 2024, with a growing population and a flood of new industry, our state is, once again, facing record demand for affordable, reliable power. And South Carolina’s not-for-profit electric cooperatives are hard at work in the political arena on behalf of the people and communities we serve.
It’s clear cooperatives cannot compete with the money of big businesses and investor-owned utilities. We can’t even compete with the money some renewable energy interests pour into politics. But we still have our purpose. When folks hear our story—our “why”—the light eventually comes on for them.
As long as there are cooperatives, we will be involved in politics. We hope our leaders understand why we exist and who we serve so they will support our mission of delivering safe, reliable and affordable power to the people of South Carolina.
Mike Couick is president and CEO of The Electric Cooperatives of South Carolina, Inc., the statewide association of not-for-profit electric cooperatives.