Snapping Shoals EMC recently donated $10,000 from the co-op’s unclaimed capital credit funds to the Covington/Newton County Chamber of Commerce. The Chamber plans to use the funds to assist in sponsoring the Industry Senior Leadership Day to be held in late September or early October. The Chamber also plans to use the funds to strengthen ongoing efforts to open a Career Academy in Newton County. In addition, some of the funds will be used to support workforce development in Newton County.

The funds were allocated from Snapping Shoals EMC’s unclaimed capital credits. Capital credits, or margins, are the revenues that are over and above the cost of providing service for customer-owners of an electric co-op, such as Snapping Shoals, for a specific year after financial obligations have been met. These are required by lending institutions to establish financial strength for loans. Snapping Shoals EMC routinely refunds these capital credits to its members when its board of directors determines it is appropriate to do so. Legislation passed in 2005 allows EMCs to retain certain unclaimed capital credits for local use rather than turning them over to the state. These unclaimed funds are used to support such programs as the Bright Ideas program, the Snapping Shoals EMC scholarship program as well as other economic and community projects.

Snapping Shoals Electric Membership Corporation is a consumer-owned electric cooperative providing electric service to approximately 95,000 homes and businesses in an eight-county area. Most of the utility’s service area is in Newton, Rockdale and Henry counties. Portions of DeKalb, Butts, Walton, Morgan and Jasper counties are also included. The company’s headquarters is on Brown Bridge Road in Newton County.