The U.S. electric grid is vulnerable to terrorist attacks that could cause much more damage to the system than natural disasters such as Hurricane Sandy, according to a recently declassified report prepared for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security by a National Academy of Sciences committee in 2007.Read More »Guest Post: Declassified Report Eyes Grid Security
On November 29, 2012, Senator Udall of Colorado submitted a bill to amend Section 501(c)(12) as it relates to mutual ditch and irrigation companies. The… Read More »AHC Cooperative Tax Brief: Proposed Amendment to Section 501(c)(12) for Water Companies
This guest post was provided by Danielle Rodabaugh, chief editor of the Surety Bond Insider.
In most cases, surety bond insurance is used to protect consumers from companies that could harm them by committing fraud or failing to follow industry regulations. In some situations, however, bonds can be used to protect a business itself. Such is the case with utility bonds used within the energy and utility sector.Read More »Guest Post: A Guide to Surety Bonds in the Energy and Utility Sectors
AHC attorneys have been closely following lawsuits against cooperatives’ capital credit management. We recently developed an updated summary of the cases. Take a moment to review the summary by clicking here.Read More »Updated Capital Credits Litigation Summary
A 2008 case and its follow-up in 2011 addressed several issues arising from common provisions in power purchase agreements. These issues involve spinning reserve requirements, dispatch rights, and the applicable heat rate formula. The underlying dispute emphasizes the need to clearly address the parties’ bargain in the power purchase agreement (PPA), preferably with the input of the parties’ legal counsel.Read More »Electric Coop vs. Power Supplier: Feuding PPA Parties Illustrate “Real Life” Disputes Involving Common PPA Provisions
This post is a repost from CFC’s Solutions News Bulletin, Sept. 24, 2012, Vol. 14, No. 36.
At the September board meeting of the National Renewables Cooperative Organization (NRCO), John List, CFC senior vice president, Member Services, discussed the funding behind current and future renewable energy projects. The regularly scheduled meeting was hosted by Indianapolis, Ind.-based Wabash Valley Power.Read More »State of Renewable Energy Financing for Coops
In a July 2012 Chief Counsel Advisory (CCA), the Service considered whether cooperatives and their patrons are subject to the related-party rules under Section 267.… Read More »IRS Applies Related-Party Restrictions to Coop’s Patronage-Dividend Deductions
AHC attorney Roland Hall was recently interviewed for an article on the trend toward more transparency and openness in cooperative governance. The article appeared in the July/August issue of the National Cooperative Business Association’s Cooperative Business Journal. Read More »AHC Attorney Discusses Cooperative Governance and Transparency Issues
On Friday, August 17, 2012, the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) approved a proposed order that would exempt certain transactions by electric cooperatives, among other “Exempt Entities,” from many of the requirements of the Commodity Exchange Act.Read More »CFTC Proposes Exemption for “Cooperatively-Owned Utilities”
In another lawsuit concerning cooperatives’ capital credit practices, a North Carolina trial court ruled in favor of a cooperative that we previously wrote about in another blog post.
The court ruled, based on the facts at issue, that the cooperative had no fiduciary duty to the plaintiffs, which were a group of deceased members’ estates. In addition, it declared that the cooperative had authority to adopt a procedure for retiring deceased members’ capital credits on an accelerated and discounted basis. However, it expressly did not rule on whether the cooperative, in practice, properly discounted the capital credits. In other words, the court reserved judgment on the specific manner of discounting the particular capital credits at issue in this case. Read More »Cooperative Litigation Update: N.C. Court Rules on Coop’s Discounting Program
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