Helping our members lower their power bills

Low-income members whose total annual electric bills are $3,000 or more could receive home improvements at no cost.

Pioneer Electric is helping our members lower their electric bills. Funded by a grant from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Rural Development, this program will aid low-income members in making necessary changes to their homes to increase energy efficiency.

 Pioneer Electric was awarded an $855,760 grant to help members lower their utility costs, and the program is currently under way. Members whose total annual energy bills are $3,000 or more and who are defined as low income by their local community action agency should contact Pioneer Electric to apply.

Here are the details:

• To be considered, you must be a member of Pioneer Electric and the homeowner of your primary residence served by Pioneer Electric. 
• Proof of income is required for your local community action agency to determine eligibility.
• The grant will allow members who are approved to replace their costly home heating and cooling units or systems with energy-efficient heat pumps. It will also pay for insulation and other weatherization improvements.
• When an applicant is approved, Pioneer Electric’s energy specialist will perform an energy audit to determine the best solutions and coordinate the work with a local contractor. The contractor will be paid by Pioneer directly from the grant dollars.
• In addition to helping members with improvements, the grant also will help educate members on the wise use of electricity. If you see public service announcements in the media from Pioneer, they are a part of the grant program and don’t cost Pioneer Electric anything.
• When the dollars are all used, the grant program will end.
• This grant does not pay power bills; it pays to install new heating and cooling units in high-energy-use households.

This project is supported in part with funds from the United States Department of Agriculture, Rural Development, Rural Utilities Service.