Jackson Progress-Argus

Arthur White (from left), Melinda Ellis, Lynda White and George Weaver are pictured at the check-passing for the Butts County school system.

On Sept. 27, Central Georgia Electric Membership Corp. Board Member Arthur White and President George L. Weaver presented the Butts County Chamber of Commerce, Butts County Development Authority, and the Butts County school board with checks totaling $19,500 to go toward community and economic development activities.

Central Georgia EMC, an electric membership cooperative headquartered in Jackson, hand delivered 22 checks this month totaling $144,890 to area chambers of commerce, school boards, and industrial development authorities throughout the service territory.

These funds come from unclaimed capital credits that remain with Central Georgia EMC after five years. Unclaimed capital credits were once remitted to the state of Georgia Department of Revenue, under Georgia’s Disposition of Unclaimed Property Act (DUPA). Unclaimed capital credits remaining after five years can now stay in the communities served by Central Georgia EMC for the sole purposes of funding education, economic development and 501(c) (3) charitable organizations in the EMC service area.

Capital credits are margins over and above the cost of providing service for members of Central Georgia EMC for a specific year, after Central Georgia EMC’s financial obligations have been met. According to unique cooperative business principles, capital credits may be returned to each member on a pro-rata basis on a schedule determined by the respective EMC management and board of directors. The amount of unclaimed capital credits will fluctuate annually, depending on the amount of capital credits refunded to members in a given year.

Central Georgia EMC is a consumer-owned cooperative providing electricity and related services to more than 50,000 billed meters in 14 counties -- Bibb, Butts, Clayton, Fayette, Henry, Jasper, Jones, Lamar, Monroe, Newton, Pike, Putnam, and Spalding.

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On the net:

Central Georgia EMC: www.cgemc.com