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A RESOLUTION adjourning the Senate in honor of the 85th anniversary of East 1
Kentucky Power Cooperative and its rich history of electrifying rural communities acros s 2
the Commonwealth. 3
WHEREAS, in May 1936, Congress passed the Rural Electrification Act, and 4
President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed it into law as part of his New Deal, which 5
allowed the federal government to provide low -cost loans to not -for-profit cooperatives 6
formed by farmers to bring electricity to rural America; and 7
WHEREAS, before 1937, only three percent of rural homes in the Commonwealth 8
had electricity, so on July 7, 1941, thirteen owner -member cooperatives formed the not -9
for-profit cooperative, East Kentucky Power Cooperative (EKPC), to address the need for 10
self-supplying economical electric generation and transmission to rural areas across the 11
Commonwealth; and 12
WHEREAS, in 1951, EKPC fought and won a years -long legal battle to supply its 13
members with power instead of being forced to take higher -priced power from investor -14
owned utilities; and 15
WHEREAS, in 1954, EKPC began operating its first power plant, the William C. 16
Dale Station in Ford, Kentucky, which significantly improved the lives of rural c itizens 17
by allowing EKPC to affordably supply electricity to its members; and 18
WHEREAS, now, 85 years after its formation and through its 16 owner -member 19
distribution cooperatives, EKPC serves over 1.1 million Kentucky residents across 89 20
counties, as well as farms, businesses, and large industrial members; and 21
WHEREAS, EKPC reliably and affordably generates electricity through its fleet of 22
two coal -fired plants, the H.L. Spurlock Station near Maysville and the John Sherman 23
Cooper Station near Somerset, and two plants powered by natural gas or fuel oil, at 24
Bluegrass Station in Lagrange and the J.K. Smith Station near Winchester; and 25
WHEREAS, EKPC also practices environmental stewardship by deploying an 26
impressive fleet of five renewable generation power -plants, making electricity from 27
UNOFFICIAL COPY 26 RS BR 1990
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methane gas at landfills and hydropower from the federal Southeastern Power 1
Administration through the Laurel River Dam and Wolf Creek dams in the Cumberland 2
River system. Additionally, EKPC has embraced the future by building ec onomical solar 3
projects consisting of 146 megawatts at four solar farms that will provide electricity to 4
over 16,000 homes; and 5
WHEREAS, EKPC's board and executives continue to pursue projects to ensure 6
long-term reliable, competitively priced power for Kentuckians; and 7
WHEREAS, the first power lines, built 85 years ago, brought a new freedom and a 8
better way of life to Kentucky fa milies, and EKPC continues to uphold its mission to 9
safely bring reliable, competitive, and sustainable energy to its owner-members today and 10
into the future; 11
NOW, THEREFORE, 12
Be it resolved by the Senate of the General Assembly of the Commonwealth of 13
Kentucky: 14
Section 1. The members of the Senate hereby honor the 85th anniversary of 15
East Kentucky Power Cooperative as one of the Commonwealth's most important and 16
crucial utility infrastructures, as well as the 750 men and women of EKPC and the 17
generations before them who have improved the lives of millions of families across the 18
Commonwealth. 19
Section 2. When the Senate adjourns this day, it does so in honor of the 85th 20
anniversary of East Kentucky Power Cooperative. 21
Section 3. The Clerk of the Senate is directed to transmit a copy of this 22
Resolution to Senator Elkins for delivery to East Kentucky Power Cooperative. 23