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Member Notices

NOTICE TO MEMBERS OF BEARTOOTH ELECTRIC COOPERATIVE

May 28, 2026

Member Notice: Intent to Enter into a Proposed Purchase Power Agreement and Long-Term Wholesale Power Contract Exceeding two (2) years
Beartooth Electric Cooperative’s Board of Trustees is providing this notice to inform members of the Board’s intent to consider a contingent Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) with the State of Montana for energy produced by the Broadwater Hydroelectric Project beginning October 1, 2027, for a term of up to five (5) years if final federal approvals are not yet completed; and additional long-term wholesale power supply agreements for the remaining portion of BEC’s future energy needs beginning October 1, 2027, to support long-term reliability and ensure uninterrupted power supply for members, The Member Notice as approved on May 28, 2026 and prepared for mailing is as follows:

 
January 27, 2026
Member Notice 1: Intent to Enter into a Long-Term Power Supply Contract Exceeding Two (2) Years
Beartooth Electric Cooperative’s Board of Trustees is providing this notice to inform members of the Board’s intent to consider entering into a long-term power supply contract exceeding two (2) years related to the proposed lease and operation of the Broadwater Hydroelectric Project, a state-owned hydroelectric resource located on the Missouri River near Toston, in Broadwater County, operated under the oversight of the Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation (DNRC).
Member Notice 2: Intent to Enter into Long-Term Debt Exceeding Two (2) Years
BEC’s Board of Trustees intends to consider long-term debt up to $1,000,000 exceeding two (2) years to support:
• The 2026 Capital Plan, and
• Broadwater Hydroelectric Project due diligence and transition costs.
Please click below to read the complete mailing, including the General Manager Pat Patterson’s Cover Letter, Member Notice: Intent to Enter into a Long-Term Power Supply Contract Exceeding Two (2) Years, and Member Notice: Intent to Enter into Long-Term Debt Exceeding Two (2) Years.
November 25, 2025

Member Notice: Proposed Rate Increase

Beartooth Electric Cooperative’s Board of Trustees is considering a proposed 4.5% total revenue increase, focused solely on updating Energy Charges. All Base Charges, System Charges, and the NorthWestern Energy Transmission Charge remain unchanged. If approved at the January 8, 2026 Board Meeting, the new Energy Charges will apply to electricity used on and after January 1, 2026 (appearing on bills mailed in early February).

This adjustment is part of BEC’s long-term plan to prepare for higher wholesale power costs expected in 2027, helping prevent a large single-year rate jump and keeping future rates more stable. For an average residential member using 843 kWh/month, the change equals about $5.05 more per month.

Members are encouraged to submit comments by December 30, 2025, or attend the January 8 Board Meeting. Full details and a rate change calculator are posted at My BEC → Rate Design.

NOTICE TO MEMBERS OF BEARTOOTH ELECTRIC COOPERATIVE

February 27, 2024
Long Term Debt
The Beartooth Electric Cooperative, Inc. (BEC) Board of Trustees hereby notifies Co-op Members that it will be voting to secure one or more long-term loans up to a total of $1,000,000 at the most competitive rate available to fund capital projects, operations, and capital credit retirements as approved in the 2024 Budget at the regular Board Meeting on June 25, 2024. These funds will be used to finance investments in BEC’s electric plant and equipment.
BEC Bylaws ARTICLE IV—Board Trustees, SECTION 1. General Powers, G. states the Board shall provide at least 60-day notice to Members of proposals before the Board approves long-term debt exceeding two (2) years or enters or amends power contracts exceeding two (2) years. Notice shall include non-confidential information considered or to be considered by the Board in evaluating the proposed action. During the notification period, Members shall be entitled to submit written comments and to comment at the monthly Board Meeting prior to the Board Meeting at which a vote on the proposal is scheduled, at the Board Meeting at which the vote is taken, or at a specially scheduled Board Meeting for comments and discussion on the proposal.
The BEC Board of Trustees hereby notifies co-op members that the Board will vote on this proposal at the regular Board Meeting on June 25, 2024. During the notification period, Members may comment on this proposal via USPS to Beartooth Electric Cooperative, Inc., Attn: Member Services, PO Box 1110, Red Lodge, MT 59068; via email to bec@beartoothelectric.com; or at the regular Board Meetings on March 26, April 30, and June 25, 2024.
For additional information, please call General Manager Pat Patterson at (406) 446-2310 or contact any BEC Board of Trustees member. This notice and documents related to BEC’s Budget are available on the BEC website, www.beartoothelectric.com, under the My BEC tab, Cooperative Financials and Member Notices.

February 27, 2024
Rate Design

The Beartooth Electric Cooperative, Inc. (BEC) Board of Trustees hereby notifies co-op members that it will vote on proposals to adjust rates to increase revenues by 5% for all rate classes at the regular Board Meeting on April 30, 2024.
BEC has not had a general rate increase since 2011 and has made several rate reductions in the years after. We plan to make significant investments in the grid to safely and reliably serve our customers’ growing energy needs. These investments are the primary driver behind this general rate increase. Other factors include staffing additions, funding the wildfire mitigation plan, patrolling 50% of our system annually, repairing deficiencies, and covering the inflation pressures we have been experiencing. In 2021, inflation was at 4.7%; in 2022, inflation was at 8%; and in 2023, it was at 4.1%. Supply chain issues have hit electric utilities hard. Over the last few years, critical components of electric distribution systems have been very challenging to acquire. When we did find them, the costs were significantly higher than what we had paid in previous years. We experienced higher costs in material, labor, and services. For these reasons, the Finance Committee recommended that the Board implement a 5% revenue increase through a general rate increase across all rate classes.
The proposed changes only apply to the System Charge ($/kW). The proposed rate changes would be effective on the May 2024 Billing statement. Current and proposed rates are shown in the following table.
BEC Bylaws, ARTICLE X-Financial Transactions, SECTION 5: Change in Rates, require notice to be given to Members at least 30 days before the Board votes to approve any increase in BEC’s rates.
The BEC Board of Trustees hereby notifies co-op members that the Board will vote on this proposal at the regular Board Meeting on April 30, 2024. During the notification period, Members may comment on this proposal via USPS to Beartooth Electric Cooperative, Inc., Attn: Member Services, PO Box 1110, Red Lodge, MT 59068; via email to bec@beartoothelectric.com; or at the regular Board Meetings on March 26 and April 30, 2024.
For additional information, please call General Manager Pat Patterson at (406) 446-2310 or contact any BEC Board of Trustees member. This notice and documents related to BEC’s Rate Design process are available on the BEC website, www.beartoothelectric.com, under the My BEC tab, Rate Design, and Member Notices.

 

March 28, 2023

March 28, 2023

April 8, 2022
OFFICIAL NOTICE
Beartooth Electric Cooperative, Inc.
2022 Annual Meeting of the Members

The 84th Annual Meeting of the Members of Beartooth Electric Cooperative, Inc., will be called to order on Saturday, May 7, 2022, at the Roosevelt Center, 519 S Broadway Ave,  located in the Town of Red Lodge, County of Carbon, and the State of Montana. Remote meeting access is also available via ZOOM https://zoom.us/s/93296489150?pwd=c3JUT1dhcVRMdDVuUU82Mk91bUR3QT09, ID 494146 on line with audio only at 253-215-8782, and Facebook LIVE at https://www.facebook.com/beartoothelectric. Registration begins at 7:30 AM. The business meeting will commence at 9:00 AM.
THE FOLLOWING EVENTS AND ACTIONS WILL BE TAKEN:
A.  Report on the number of Members present in order to determine the existence of a quorum;
B. Reading of the Notice of the meeting and proof of the due publication or mailing thereof, or the waiver or waivers of notice of the meeting, as the case may be;
C. Reading of unapproved minutes of previous meetings of the Members and the taking of necessary action thereon;
D. Election of Board Trustees;
E. Keynote Speaker, Tracy Warren, Beneficial Electrification League;
F. Presentation and considerations of reports of Officers, Trustees, and Committees;
G. 2021 Audit Report, Brian Van Steeland CPA, Summers, McNea and Company, PC
H. Unfinished Business;
I. New Business;
J. Adjournment.
DATED  APRIL 8, 2022
Arleen Boyd Secretary/Treasurer

April 19, 2021
OFFICIAL NOTICE
Beartooth Electric Cooperative, Inc.
2021 Annual Meeting of the Members

The 83rd Annual Meeting of the Members of Beartooth Electric Cooperative, Inc., will be called to order on Saturday, May 1, 2021, remotely from the Beartooth Electric Cooperative Office, located in the Town of Red Lodge, County of Carbon, and the State of Montana. This remote meeting registration begins at 8 AM on ZOOM meeting ID 916 3939 7710, FaceBook LIVE messaging, bec@beartoothelectric.com, and by phone 406-446-2310. The business meeting will commence at 9 AM.

ACTION WILL BE TAKEN ON THE FOLLOWING MATTERS:

  1. Report on the number of Members present in order to determine the existence of a quorum;
  2. Reading of the Notice of the meeting and proof of the due publication or mailing thereof, or the waiver or waivers of notice of the meeting, as the case may be;
  3. Reading of unapproved minutes of previous meetings of the Members and the taking of necessary action thereon;
  4. Election of Board Trustees;
  5. Presentation and considerations of reports of officers, Trustees, and Committees;
  6. Unfinished Business;
  7. New Business;
  8. Adjournment.

DATED THIS 19th DAY OF APRIL 2021
Arleen Boyd Secretary/Treasurer

January 5, 2021
Rate Proposal

The Beartooth Electric Cooperative (BEC) Board of Trustees hereby notifies co-op members that it will be voting on proposals to adjust rates for the irrigation rate class at the February 23, 2021, Board meeting.

Over the years, BEC’s Cost of Service Analysis (COSA) results have consistently shown that irrigation class revenues, unfortunately, fall short of meeting the costs to serve this class. However, the total amount of revenue shortfall has varied with each COSA. The latest report shows that irrigation revenues need to be increased by about 25% to equal the full cost of service. In a first step effort to better align revenues with costs, the Risk Management Committee recommends that the board implement a 5% irrigation rate increase effective April 1, 2021. In addition to rate fairness across rate classes, the committee also looked at rate fairness within the irrigation rate class. It recommends the following changes to better align charges with usage: 1) 12-month billing, 2) 3-tiered base rate system, 3) slight decrease to the energy charge (kWh), and 4) slight increase to the system charge (kW) along with the introduction of a minimum system charge (kW). Going forward, the Irrigation rate design will be reviewed each year to determine the progress made toward assuring that the Irrigation class is paying its full cost of service.

BEC Member Notice January 2021 (PDF)

May 11, 2020
Rate Proposal

The Beartooth Electric Cooperative (BEC) Board of Trustees hereby notifies co-op members that it will be voting on proposals to adjust rates for all customer classes at the June 30, 2020, Board meeting.

These proposed rate adjustments are the result of a rate design review process conducted by the Board and BEC’s Risk Management Committee that has been underway since October 2018. The proposed rates are not intended to generate additional overall revenue for BEC. Rather, the proposed rates are designed to produce the same amount of revenue from each customer class as the current rates assuming normal weather conditions.

BEC Member Notice May 2020 (PDF)

January 17, 2020
Rate Proposal

The BEC board of trustees hereby notifies co-op members that to meet the financial impact of NorthWestern Energy Corporation’s (NWE) 53.8% transmission rate increase, a proposal to implement a cost pass-through revenue increase of 2.8% ($250,000) by raising BEC’s electric rate $0.003616/kwh on all rate classes (residential, small commercial, large commercial, industrial and irrigation), effective March 1, 2020, is under consideration.

Notice to Members January 2020 (PDF)

Articles of Interest:

July 25, 2017
New Loan

Securing a two-year loan with CoBank for deposit into the RUS Cushion of Credit account was approved by the board at the July 25, 2017 board meeting. The board also voted to consider an additional loan from CoBank for an additional three years for deposit into the RUS Cushion of Credit account.

Notice to Members July 2017 (PDF)

June 29, 2017
Power Contract

The board issued a June 29, 2017 60-day notice to members of proposals for power contracts exceeding two years. BEC notified co-op members that the contract with Montana-based Energy Keepers, Inc. (EKI) includes an option to extend the contract for three additional years, through September 30, 2027. In early September the two-year contract with Energy Keepers was replaced with a five-year contract. Its term is Oct. 1, 2022 through Sept. 30, 2027. It is a fixed-rate, load-following contract.

Notice to Members July 2017 (PDF)