More than 250 youth from 25 Illinois electric and telephone cooperatives from across the state visited the State Capitol as part of the Association of Illinois Electric Cooperative’s annual Youth Day, held Wednesday, March 28 in Springfield. Students had the opportunity to have photos taken and meet with their district senators and representatives, hear from Lt.Gov. [...]

In March, National Rural Electric Cooperative Association CEO Glenn English made the following statement on the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) proposed greenhouse gas regulations: “NRECA and its member electric cooperatives are extremely disappointed to learn that the Obama Administration, in a New Source Performance Standard issued today by the EPA, has jettisoned American coal from [...]

Members of Southern Illinois Power Cooperative (SIPC) in Marion were updated on the organization’s financial condition and reductions in power cost during the power cooperative’s Annual Meeting of Members held in March. SIPC was able to hold base rates even for 2011. “Optimism began to grow in 2011 with SIPC achieving excellent reliability at the [...]

The prices being paid for farmland across Illinois continue their upward spiral with the tops being in the $10,000 to $13,000 per acre range across the state. This is according to the 2012 Farmland Values and Lease Trends Report released in March by the Illinois Society of Professional Farm Managers and Rural Appraisers. The top [...]

Interested in volunteering at an IDNR site or on an IDNR project? Sign up to be part of the IDNR Volunteer Network. See the IDNR website for more details at: www.dnr.state.il.us/volunteer/index.htm

It may surprise some folks that electric co-ops have emerged as leaders in the down-line automation field. But innovation is a key part of our cooperative DNA. It embodies the same spirit that drove rural residents to find ways to overcome seemingly insurmountable technical, engineering, legal, political, and financial hurdles and bring electric service to [...]

Sens. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., and Richard Lugar, R-Ind., introduced S. 2216, the Rural Energy Savings Program Act, on March 21. Under the bill, the Rural Utilities Service would make zero-interest loans to individual electric co-ops or state groups of co-ops. In turn, they would lend the money to eligible members at no more than 3 [...]

In April representatives from more than 500 cooperatives in 42 states descend on Washington, D.C. for the first ever “Grassroots Summit.” The co-op leaders met with Capitol Hill staffers to discuss policy issues, but the primary focus was on engaging co-op members in grassroots and political action.  “Investing time and energy in developing our grassroots [...]

Don Wood, Vice President of Government Relations for the Association of Illinois Electric Cooperatives, announced the names of the seven winners of the 2012 Thomas H. Moore IEC Memorial Scholarship in May.  “There were 230 applications received this year and, as always, a large number were extremely qualified applicants,” said Wood. The amount of each [...]

OutdoorIllinois Online connects the Illinois Department of Natural Resources with today’s Prairie State sportsmen and outdoor enthusiasts in the digital world. At OutdoorIllinois Online (www.dnr.illinois.gov/OI) you’ll find more outdoor news, in-depth features, how-to tips and great places to visit in our wild Illinois. Check out our “bonus” features, including full-length stories about Illinois’ natural and [...]