Category: News

Each year when Claiborne Electric begins to bill for winter electric usage, the Co-op sees an uptick of member complaints about winter bills.

Electrical energy is one of the last services in a household budget that people pay for after the fact. There is a direct and significant correlation between temperature extremes and electric consumption. This month’s newsletter contains a helpful article about electric usage and billing.

The frustration of receiving an electric bill that is higher than a member imagined it should be is understandable. There are two important things to remember when receiving winter bills. First, Claiborne Electric’s cost of service is a great value for members. The LPSC electric cost comparison for December shows the average cost for 1,000 kWh of electricity in Louisiana was $128.43. Claiborne Electric’s cost was lower than the state average at $126.50.

The second important thing to remember is that a traditional electric bill represents electric usage that happened an average of 45 days prior to the due date. It can be difficult to open a bill when it’s 70 degrees outside to see an amount that is higher than expected. Often, that bill can represent usage that occurred when temperatures were in the 20s or 30s. When Claiborne Electric reformatted bills last year, the new format was able to give members not just a nicer and more modern look, but a bill that provides significantly more information than the previous format. One section of the bill now contains temperature highs and lows during the billing period, so members can see the direct correlation between temperatures and usage.

Claiborne Electric has a fantastic team of Member Service Representatives who would be glad to answer any billing question or walk through usage with a quick phone call. Members can also monitor their daily usage through our free SmartHub app. Billing questions can by answered by an MSR by calling the Homer office at (318) 927-3504 or the Farmerville office at (318) 368-3011.

Claiborne Electric’s Outage Management System (OMS) has the capability to notify members, via the SmartHub app, of the earliest possible time their service could be restored following an outage.  Members will not immediately receive an Estimated Time of Restoration (ETR) message as soon as their service is interrupted but rather once assessment is completed. The ETR message is sent once the Co-op has been able to make an initial assessment of the damage that caused the outage and how long it might take to complete repairs and restore service. Similarly, because different members are fed from different lines and substations, members who live relatively close to each other may not receive the same ETR message or even ETR messages at the same time.

These ETR messages will only be sent to members who have registered their accounts in SmartHub.  If you have not taken advantage of our SmartHub app yet, now is a great time to start!

No technology is perfect, but the Cooperative is hopeful this additional communication path with our members will help keep members more up to date following significant weather events than in years past.

Claiborne Electric uses specialized contract companies to help complete parts of our annual construction and right-of-way maintenance program in an efficient and cost-effective manner.

Several of those companies are currently working throughout Claiborne Electric’s service territory on different projects. These workers are each doing important work to keep the cooperative functioning as safely and efficiently as possible. We ask members to be courteous and respectful as they come into contact with representatives of these contract companies.

Currently, Claiborne Electric has contractors working on projects in these areas:

• Osmose is conducting pole inspections in north Webster Parish near the Shongaloo area.
• Koppers is working on pole inspections in the Heflin and Regency areas of Webster Parish.
• Good Hope is working on tree trimming in the Point area of Union Parish
• Shelton Energy Solutions is line construction contractor working near Minden in Webster Parish and between Ruston and Grambling in Lincoln Parish.
• LineTec Services is a line construction contractor working near Choudrant in Lincoln Parish.

If a member ever has questions about a vehicle or contractor representatives in their area, we ask them to contact their local Claiborne Electric office at (318) 927-3504 or (318) 368-3011.

Nominations for Directors in three of Claiborne Electric’s districts will open during the month of January.

Members in Districts Three, Seven, and Eight may nominate a member from that district for election at the 2026 Annual Meeting. Nominations will be open for the entire month of January and are due by close-of-business on the last business day of the month (January 30, 2026).

Kenneth Franklin of Marion currently represents District 3, Phillip Fincher of Homer currently represents District 7, and Lane Davidson of Minden currently represents District 8.

Article IV, Section 4 of Claiborne Electric’s Bylaws specifies how candidates for Director can be nominated:

“Nomination

Any three (3) members of record living within a district and acting together, may make a nomination for the Director from that district in writing during the month of January. Nominations will be due by close of business on the last business day of January. The Secretary shall post such nominations at the principal office of the Cooperative in both Union and Claiborne Parishes. If only one nomination is submitted, the Board of Directors will declare the nominated candidate as the winner and shall not hold an election for that district. If no nominations are submitted, the seat will be considered a vacancy and will be handled according to Article IV, Section 6 of these bylaws.”

For specific information on districts or election rules, please reference Claiborne Electric’s Bylaws. Bylaws pertaining to districts and director elections can be found in Article IV of the Bylaws. A complete district map and district descriptions can be found here.

In the electric utility rate comparisons released by the Louisiana Public Service Commission (LPSC) for the month of December, Claiborne Electric has some of the lowest electric rates among all providers in the state.

The LPSC regulates all electric cooperatives and investor-owned electric utilities in Louisiana. In December’s electric utility rate comparison, only five companies had rates slightly lower than Claiborne Electric. All five of these companies are our sister cooperatives in other parts of the state. Claiborne Electric’s rates are significantly lower than the investor-owned utilities across the entire state.

In December, Claiborne Electric members using an average of 1,000 kWh per month were billed $126.50. In comparison, the same bill would be $135.74 for an Entergy customer, $147.06 for a SWEPCO customer, and $149.49 for a CLECO customer.

One kWh is equal to using 1,000 watts of electricity for 60 minutes. At Claiborne Electric, each kWh costs members about 12.7 cents. Claiborne Electric’s members are only paying a few cents more for a kWh of electricity than 20 years ago. In comparison, think about the cost of eggs, bread, coffee, medicine, gasoline, or a vehicle 20 years ago compared to today. Where other goods and necessities have doubled, tripled, or even more in price, electricity has held its value and remained similar in price per kWh for decades.

The cost per kilowatt-hour (kWh) of electricity has risen slower than any other household commodity for decades, making electricity an excellent household value. With electricity required for heating, cooling, lighting, cleaning, cooking, refrigeration, working, entertainment, transportation, and communication, there is barely a part of life that does not require electrification.

The U.S. Energy Information Administration estimates Americans will end the year using more than four billion kWh. Clearly, energy consumption shows no signs of slowing down. We encourage members to remember the value electricity holds with each flip of a switch, press of a button, and charge of a phone. Claiborne Electric’s free SmartHub app is a great resource for monitoring electric usage.

At Claiborne Electric, we are always looking out for members by working to keep electric bills affordable and service reliable. For more information on lowering electric consumption and using energy more wisely, please contact a local Claiborne Electric office.

Claiborne Electric Lineman Ryan Beach completed module IV of the Association of Louisiana Electric Cooperatives’ (ALEC) Lineman Training School, which brings to completion his four-year line worker training.

This school is held in Baton Rouge at ALEC’s office. The complete program consists of four modules, with participants completing one module per year. The program requires more than 150 training hours of classroom instruction, independent study, and hands-on education.

Module IV includes advanced education and training in Level 4 Safety, Communication Systems, Special Elements 2, Vegetation Management, System Operation, System Automation, Overhead Line Design, Underground Line Design, Trouble Investigation, and Crew Leadership.

We congratulate Ryan on four years of dedication and hard work in completing this rigorous educational program in order to serve Claiborne Electric’s members.

In response to the growing threat of phishing attacks targeting services that accept online payments, including the electric utility industry, Claiborne Electric’s software developer is taking proactive steps to enhance the security of its SmartHub billing and payment system.

SmartHub has implemented optional two-factor authentication as an added layer of protection for your account.

Nationwide, the number of recent phishing scams are increasing at a concerning rate. Phishing attacks are a common tactic used by cybercriminals to trick account holders into revealing personal information. These attacks often involve fraudulent emails or text messages that appear to be from a legitimate organization, luring account holders to click on a malicious link or provide sensitive information.

Safeguarding account information is important, and we are committed to providing a secure online experience. Implementing two-factor authentication adds an extra layer of security to help prevent unauthorized access to your SmartHub account.

With two-factor authentication, members must provide two forms of identification before gaining access to accounts. This typically involves entering a username and passcode, then entering a unique, single-use code sent to a mobile device or email address. Many industries require two-factor authentication, including banks, credit card companies, email platforms, and retails establishments. This added security measure makes it significantly more difficult for cybercriminals to compromise accounts.

While this added security measure is optional, we encourage all members to enroll in two-factor authentication to further protect accounts from unauthorized access. This will allow us to increase our commitment to protecting your account while giving you the trusted confidence of secure transactions.

Find more information about SmartHub here.

Members with questions or concerns about the addition of two-factor authentication are encouraged to contact a Member Services Representative by calling the Homer (318-927-3504) or Farmerville (318-368-3011) office.

In May, Capital One finalized its acquisition of Discover Financial Services. As with any commercial merger, some changes were inevitable.

Claiborne Electric was recently made aware that Capital One is transitioning current cardholders from Visa or MasterCard to its new Discover brand. When we received this information, Claiborne Electric was not able to accept Discover cards for payment. We recognized this created an inconvenience for many of our members who routinely pay with a credit card in person, online, or through our SmartHub app.

Our office staff immediately began working diligently to add Discover cards as an accepted form of payment. We understood the importance of this issue, and were able to expedite the process. We are glad to let our members know we have finalized that process and can now accept Discover card payments. Members can now pay with Discover in person, online, or through our SmartHub app. We are glad to offer this new option to our members.

We appreciate our members for their patience and support as we worked as quickly as possible to add Discover cards as a payment option.

In May, Capital One finalized its acquisition of Discover Financial Services. As with any commercial merger, some changes were inevitable. Claiborne Electric has been made aware that Capital One is now transitioning its current cardholders from Visa or MasterCard to its new Discover brand. Unfortunately, Claiborne Electric does not currently accept Discover cards. We recognize this has created an inconvenience for many of our members who routinely pay with a credit card in person, online, or through our SmartHub app.

Our office staff is working diligently to add Discover cards as an accepted form of payment. We understand the importance of this need, and we are doing everything we can to expedite the process. We appreciate your patience and support as we work as quickly as possible to add Discover cards as a payment option.

Beginning October 1, Claiborne Electric’s offices will be open weekdays from 8 a.m. until 4:30 p.m., with offices closing from noon until 1 p.m. for lunch.

This change will bring consistency to office hours in both the Homer and Farmerville locations. It will allow our employees to have a consistent lunch break schedule and will streamline our end-of-day processes for Member Service Representatives and other employees in our Billing Department. We appreciate our members’ patience in adjusting to this change.