The Story of the Electric Cooperative
Concho Valley EC is a cooperative owned and overseen by the west central Texas consumers we serve, known as "members".
Electric cooperatives were created under the Rural Electrification Act in 1936 to bring electricity to farm and ranch communities unserved by investor-owned utilities. The law allowed rural residents to incorporate under a cooperative model and receive low-cost loans from the federal government.
Today, more than 900 electric cooperatives in 47 states provide electricity across 56 percent of the U.S.
Cooperatives around the world generally operate according to the same core principles, and they trace these roots to the first cooperative founded in Rochdale, England in 1844. This is considered the birth of modern cooperatives because of the seven principles created to guide the co-op proved successful. The principles have evolved over the years, but no matter the industry, today all cooperative businesses adhere to them.
Our Cooperative
1936
Under the Rural Electrification Act (REA), CVEC was allocated $165,000 which allowed the cooperative to build approximately 238 miles of line, for service of at least 541 homes.
1940
On May 24, 1940, CVEC received its Articles of Incorporation in the state of Texas. Shortly after on May 30, 1940 CVEC held the first official meeting and elected J. B. Johnson as president, and George J. Bailey as secretary-treasurer. Along with the other interim directors, CVEC hired Carroll Land as its first manager.
1941
The Henry Mazur farm, almost three miles south of Veribest, was the first home to be energized on July 22, 1941.
1948
Crews installed CVEC's first radio tower.
1950
By 1950, CVEC had outgrown it's offices at 428 Upton Street and began moving into their new facility. CVEC new headquarters was located at 207 North Main Street in San Angelo.
1962
In 1962, the Cooperative issued its first capital credit checks to its members, returning credits for 1951 margins.
1968
By 1968, electronic data processing was being used for billing, payroll, accounts payable, construction cost analysis, depreciation, line loss evaluation, work orders, and much more using a punch card system.
1972
In November of 1972, the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA) awarded CVEC safety accreditation for employees working more than five hundred thousand hours without a lost-time accident. Maintaining a high standard of job safety, the last accident had occurred more than fourteen years prior in 1957.
1973
Manager Carroll Land retired after thirty-three years of service to CVEC and its members. Jack Webb, an employee of the co-op since 1941, transitioned to general manager.
1974
In October of 1974, CVEC purchased ten acres east of San Angelo at 2530 Pulliam Street with plans to build a new headquarters for the growing cooperative.
1975
By the start of 1975, the Cooperative was serving 3,898 meters and 418 security lights on 2,345 miles of line.
1977
Construction of CVEC's new headquarters is completed and an open house is held on May 22, 1977.
1979
After thirty-eight years of service, Jack Webb retired at the end of 1979. Alton Rollans assumed the mantle as general manager in January 1980.
1980
CVEC marked its fortieth year of service on May 24, 1980. Capital credits for 1962 were retired when checks totaling $59,029 were mailed just before the 1980 annual meeting where the main topic was growth.
1980
Then board President, John Johnston, announced at the 1980 annual meeting, "In terms of annual percent growth in the number of new members, your Cooperative ranks 49th out of 910 rural electrics nationwide and second out of 75 rural electrics in Texas. In percentage of growth in total utility plant, we are 24th in the nation and first in Texas."
1984
During 1984, CVEC had 3,067 miles of line serving 7,301 meters, and forty-eight employees.
1986
CVEC adopted a new Value Incentive Plan (VIP) program that went into effect January 1, 1986. The program's objective was to encourage members to install high-efficiency air-conditioning and heat pump units with a one-time cash payment in order to lower the Cooperative's peak demand and thereby lower their wholesale power cost.
1986
Mia Allen and John Lehr are CVEC's first Government-in-Action Youth Tour winners.
1989
The Orient Substation was completed in June 1989. This brought the number of substations owned by CVEC to nine, three of which had been completed in the three years prior.
1993
The Board of Directors voted to retire $300,000 in capital credits, the largest amount ever retired by CVEC bringing its total capital credit retirement to $2,743,671.
1995
At the start of 1995, CVEC was operated by forty-seven employees, and served approximately 4,124 members on 9,513 meters over a total of 3,548 miles of line covering 4,175 square miles in ten counties.
2001
Weldon Gray became the executive vice president/CEO of the Cooperative on August 15, 2001, following the retirement of Alton Rollans.
2003
CVEC joined Golden Spread Electric Cooperative, a generation and transmission cooperative, to help insure an affordable and reliable power supply for the future.
2005
Following the tragic death of Weldon Gray on November 26, 2005, Sid Long, who had served on the CVEC Board since March 1997, resigned his seat and was appointed by the other Board members as the interim CEO until March 2008.
2005
During the mid-2000s, CVEC's automated meter-reading system or AMR, was fully operational throughout the system and the Cooperative had installed GPS markers to provide quick response to outages and instant mapping to locate problems on the lines. With the addition of a new digital radio system, CVEC crews were able to coordinate their locations and provide means for local fire departments and other emergency groups to coordinate their response to emergencies.
2008
After guiding CVEC for a little over two years, Sid Long decided it was time for the Cooperative to have a permanent CEO. In April of 2008 the Board of Directors promoted Kelly Lankford, who had been serving as the Co-op's manager of finance and accounting since he started in 2004, to the CEO position.
2015
CVEC celebrated its seventy-fifth anniversary in 2015. The Cooperative had sixty-one employees, 6,266 members, more than 14,000 connected meters, and a total of 4,287 miles of line covering 4,175 square miles in ten counties including Tom Green, Coke, Concho, Sterling, Mitchell, Nolan, Runnels, Glasscock, Irion, and Reagan. At the time, CVEC had assets of more than $95 million with over 295-million kWh sales annually.
2020
CVEC celebrated its eightieth anniversary in 2020. The Cooperative now has sixty-six employees, more than 7,592 members, over 15,398 connected meters, and a total of 4,372 miles of line.
Cooperative Principles
- Voluntary and Open Membership — Cooperatives are voluntary organizations, open to all persons able to use their services and willing to accept the responsibilities of membership, without gender, social, racial, political or religious discrimination.
- Democratic Member Control — We’re governed by our members. Cooperatives are democratic organizations controlled by their members, who actively participate in setting policies and making decisions. The elected representatives are accountable to the membership. In primary cooperatives, members have equal voting rights (one member, one vote) and cooperatives at other levels are organized in a democratic manner. (It doesn’t depend on your energy usage or your tenure with us.)
- Members' Economic Participation — Members contribute equitably to, and democratically control, the capital of their cooperative.
- Autonomy and Independence — Cooperatives are autonomous, self-help organizations controlled by their members. If they enter into agreements with other organizations, including governments, or raise capital from external sources, they do so on terms that ensure democratic control by their members and maintain their cooperative autonomy.
- Education, Training, and Information — Cooperatives provide education and training for their members, elected representatives, managers and employees so they can contribute effectively to the development of their cooperatives.
- Cooperation Among Cooperatives — We serve our members best by strengthening the cooperative movement and working together through structured groups such as Texas Electric Cooperatives (TEC) and the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA).
- Concern for Community — While focusing on our member needs, Concho Valley EC works for the sustainable development of our community.
Carroll Land served as CVEC's general manager from May 1940 to December 1973.
CVEC headquarters at 207 North Main in San Angelo, ten years after organizing.
Emmitt Butts moves equipment through the warehouse.
Manager Carroll Land standing next to a CVEC fleet vehicle.
A groundman hoists equipment up to the lineman using a handline.
The Board of Directors at the annual meeting in July 1949.
Members enjoying themselves at the annual meeting in 1949.
A hand-drawn staking sheet from November 1950.
Jack Webb served as CVEC's general manager from January 1974 to December 1979.
CVEC purchased land for its new headquarters on Pulliam Street in 1974 and started construction the following March.
G.C. Miller, right, has the undivided attention of Assistant Manager Alton Rollans.
Larry Gray and Kitty Baucom at the IBM 1401 computer that used punch cards.
Alton Rollans served as CVEC's general manager from January 1980 to August 2001.
CVEC got its first bucket truck in 1974 but crews occasionally had to work long hours on the poles the old-fashioned way. Here crews work on transmission lines just east of San Angelo in January 1982.
CVEC got its first bucket truck in 1974 but crews occasionally had to work long hours on the poles the old-fashioned way. Here crews work on transmission lines just east of San Angelo in January 1982.
Manager Alton Rollans congratulates Mia Allen on being one of CVEC's first Youth Tour winners, March 1986.
Manager Alton Rollans congratulates John Lehr on being one of CVEC's first Youth Tour winners, March 1986.
Crews deliver a transformer for installation at the Orient Substation, May 1989.
Weldon Gray served as CVEC's general manager from September 2001 to November 2005.
Sid Long served as CVEC's general manager from December 2005 to March 2008.