Each year brings its own set of challenges, but I’m proud to say that our team, our members and our cooperative family continue to rise above them — together.
We faced proposed legislation this year that would have significantly increased costs for our members and stripped away local control. But, thanks to your advocacy, we made sure that the voices of cooperative members were heard loud and clear. More than 4,300 letters were sent to legislators through Voices for Cooperative Power.
Legislative accomplishments
One major success involved Senate Bill 40. The bill originally would have forced expensive, over-the-top integrated resource planning requiring irrelevant information. We didn’t just oppose the bill; we educated lawmakers about the unique cooperative model — and how we already balance affordability, reliability and sustainability.
Safety achievements
Our statewide training programs reach more lineworkers and cooperative staff than ever before. The safety and training staff at the Association of Illinois Electric Cooperatives (AIEC) has worked tirelessly to reduce incidents and improve training.
The last time an Illinois co-op employee was killed on the job was in 2015. Electricity is unforgiving and can be deadly in an instant. Every time we invest in safety, we invest in someone’s life. That’s worth every effort.
Vision for the future
The challenges are real, but so are our opportunities. It’s an amazing, cutting-edge time to work in electric utilities, addressing questions like how can we serve huge AI loads and at what risk? Will EVs eventually dominate? What generation resources are the future and when? How can we do all of this and keep energy affordable?
Looking ahead, the AIEC will continue to be a trusted advocate, innovator and resource hub for Illinois electric cooperatives. We will continue to provide resources, training and leadership development to help every cooperative thrive. We will continue to deliver on our mission to provide support, expertise and unity of purpose for our member cooperatives.
Closing thoughts
The AIEC was formed back in 1942 to amplify the cooperative voice, and that still holds true today. It enables the 25 distribution electric cooperatives and the five generation and transmission cooperatives in Illinois to have a unified voice that is louder than the sum of its parts.
As I reflect on this past year, I’m proud of the work we do behind the scenes, in boardrooms, at the Capitol and out in the field so rural Illinoisans can have reliable, affordable power every single day. We’ll keep doing it, because that’s who we are.
Thank you for your dedication, your passion and your belief in the cooperative way. Together, we’ve accomplished a lot. Together, we’ll take on the challenges ahead — and win.
This is an excerpt of Craig Sondgeroth’s CEO report presented during the Association of Illinois Electric Cooperatives’ annual meeting on July 31, 2025.
