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GVEC Members: Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What is the POWER UP mission?
A: The program’s mission is to accumulate funds and reinvest the money in our communities by providing bill-pay assistance to qualified GVEC members and community grants to local nonprofit groups and civic organizations for community development and improvement projects.
POWER UP is funded through the generosity of participating GVEC members, and provides a unique opportunity to turn our small change into big change for something worthwhile: stronger communities.
Q: How does the POWER UP program work?
A: Your electric bill will be rounded up to the nearest dollar each month, and the difference in change will be donated to the Fund. For example, if your bill is $114.76, it will be rounded up to $115.00. The difference between your actual bill and the rounded up amount (.24 cents) will be donated to the POWER UP Community Fund. The amount donated could be as little as a penny, and not more than .99 cents. The donation will appear as a line item on your GVEC electric bill.
Q: When did the program start?
A: Electric bill “round ups” began with the July 2011 bill.
Q: How are funds distributed and to whom?
A: About 30% of the funds are used for community assistance, distributed each month through three area Council of Government (COG) offices to help low-income and elderly members pay their electric bills. Members must qualify for bill-pay assistance through guidelines set by GVEC and the COG offices.
Approximately 70% of POWER UP funds are distributed through community grants to nonprofit groups and civic organizations involved in community development and improvement projects in the GVEC service area with a focus on education, youth programs, health care, community development, civic and community outreach, and public safety/service organizations. Applications for these grants are evaluated by a Grants Review Committee representing GVEC’s service areas. There are two funding cycles a year; application deadline is February 15 for the April distribution and August 15 for the October distribution. The people, organizations and locations of the community projects do not have to be served by GVEC to be eligible, but the projects must lie within the outer geographical boundary lines of the GVEC service area or have overlapping service areas.
Q: How do GVEC members apply for bill-pay assistance?
A: GVEC members must contact a Council of Government (COG) office to apply.
Q: How do nonprofit groups and civic organizations apply for grants?
A: An application, along with eligibility information, can be downloaded on gvec.org. The information is also available at GVEC area offices.
For a list of POWER UP grant recipients, click here.
Q:
I'm a GVEC member. How do I participate in the POWER UP program?
A: You do not need to do anything if you would like to participate. If you choose to opt-out of the program at any time, click here to send an email, call us at 800.223.4832 or visit any GVEC office.
