The day has finally come for USDA to make $9.7 billion available in grants, loans, and loan modification under the Empowering Rural America (New ERA) program.

"One of the fixes can be for the utility company that provides service to these is to get resources from the federal government to invest in clean, cheap energy, to help lower the bills for Magnitude 7 Metals." - James Owen, Renew MO.

The overall sentiment of the PowerXchange conference, and the keynote from NRECA director, Jim Matheson, was that now is the time to lead.

RPC will be focusing our efforts to assist G&T, distribution rural electric cooperatives, and our partners with resources and information to apply for the IRA programs of New ERA (Empowering Rural America), Rural Energy for America Program (REAP), Direct Pay Tax Credits, and the Powering Affordable Clean Energy (PACE) program.

Funding will help rural electric cooperatives deploy renewable energy systems and help finance large-scale solar, wind, geothermal and other clean energy projects

The letter urges Congress to preserve funding for farm bill energy title programs provided in last year’s Inflation Reduction Act.

After the Rural Power Coalition (and supporters like you) called for the USDA to provide additional opportunities for stakeholder feedback, the Rural Utility Service has scheduled 13 virtual round table discussions. Unfortunately, the schedule was only released last week, and the sessions start this week!

In response to a call for public comments regarding the Inflation Reduction Act, RPC rallied 60+ organizations serving and/or in support of Rural Electric Cooperatives and 200+ individuals and member-owners to provide verbal comments and sign on to joint letters.

The Inflation Reduction Act contains historic investments in rural electrification that will help secure the energy transition, save rural families money, and create 90,000 rural jobs over the next ten years.

This 2-page fact sheet highlights a fraction of what’s in the Inflation Reduction Act for Rural Electric Cooperatives.

As rural communities watch wind and solar farms begin to dot their landscape, many want to ensure rural America can own, not just host, the clean energy transition.

New OpEd by Duane Highley, CEO of Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association, Ramón Cruz, president of the Sierra Club, and Erik Hatlestad, a member of the Rural Power Coalition Steering Committee.

Today, the Rural Power Coalition sent the following letter to White House Cabinet Members and Officials asking them to ensure the voices of rural communities are heard throughout the implementation process of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). It is imperative that underserved communities have the opportunity to offer their input on how the IRA should be implemented.

We also make the case that distributing the funds without a Justice40 protocol similar to the one implemented at the Department of Energy is a hazard to the IRA’s impact and the impact it will have on our communities.

Electric-cooperative members are often still paying off debts incurred decades ago during the construction of old power plants and infrastructure. [Philip Fracica, director of programs for Renew Missouri] pointed out the new grant and loan program allows co-ops to retire debt and offers forgivable loans to help build new generation capacity. He sees the approach as being better over the long term.

Experts say the money set aside for transition towards renewable sources of energy in the Inflation Reduction Act could kick start the switch for rural electric co-ops.

The Inflation Reduction Act has made a historic investment of $370 billion dollars to fight climate change over the next decade.

Among its benefits, the act will provide tax credits for Rural Electric Cooperatives to move toward clean energy.

A provision in the federal bill would allow co-ops, which operate as nonprofits, to take advantage of federal tax credits for developing green energy

The Inflation Reduction Act, passed by Congress in August, sets aside hundreds of billions in funding for clean energy projects. Some of the money will go toward Missouri’s rural electric cooperatives to help them transition from coal to renewables.

Rural electric co-operatives will soon be able to take advantage of a new $9.7 billion program included in the Inflation Reduction Act that will help them finance a clean energy transition, escaping onerous debts that have kept many co-ops from getting off coal.

When President Joe Biden signed the Inflation Reduction Act last week, he authorized two measures that will affect the country's rural electric cooperatives: $9.7 billion in grants for renewable energy projects and direct pay credits for those projects.

Leaders from southeast Minnesota's co-ops say that funding will have a significant impact.

"Many co-op leaders have been very interested in moving this way," Erik Hatlestad, energy democracy program director at Montevideo, Minnesota-based CURE – Clean Up the River Environment. "And we think we've given them the tools to do so now."