On January 10, over 100 state legislators joined more than 150 directors, managers, and employees from Iowa’s electric cooperatives at the 2023 Welcome Back Legislative Reception in downtown Des Moines. The Iowa Association of Electric Cooperatives hosted the annual reception in conjunction with the Iowa Biotechnology Association, the Iowa Communications Alliance, the Iowa Institute for Cooperatives, and FUELIowa.

The event provided a valuable opportunity to meet with state legislators at the beginning of the 2023 session and discuss issues that impact rural electric cooperatives and the communities we serve. For example, we’re concerned about secretive industrial and commercial corporations that are seeking to circumvent Iowa’s electric service territory laws. These protections exist to provide stability for Iowa homes, farms, and businesses. Iowa’s electric cooperatives are also opposed to any legislation that would deny landowners the option to use their property for utility-scale solar generation if they so choose.

In the coming months, the Iowa General Assembly will be addressing a multitude of issues, including energy-related matters that are central to Iowa’s rural economy. Beginning with the Welcome Back Legislative Reception, electric cooperative directors, managers, and staff will again be important advocates for a balanced approach in addressing energy issues. Every day, Iowa’s locally owned electric cooperatives provide affordable, reliable, safe, and environmentally responsible power to more than 650,000 Iowans across the state’s 99 counties.

Above: ECI REC CEO Teresa Floyd, Board Vice President Jeff Elliott, and Director Gary McKenna met with Representative Tom Gerhold and Senator Dawn Driscoll at the 2023 Welcome Back Legislative Reception.