Frequently Asked Questions

Am I a member?

Cooperative members are subscribers within the Peoples Telephone Coop footprint. Click below to see the boundaries of Peoples cooperative services. Subscribers within the ‘gray’ areas would qualify for membership.

 

What are capital credits/where did this money come from?

As a cooperative, we are owned by our members. Your capital credits are your amount of patronage capital which is the margin or profit left over each fiscal year after Peoples pays all its expenses. This is allocated in proportion to your billings.

 

How does Peoples determine how much of those margins go to each member?

Patronage capital is allocated and assigned to members as capital credits based on the amount of business they conduct with Peoples during the year.  The more business a member does with Peoples during the year, the larger their portion of the patronage capital will be.

 

Why doesn’t Peoples distribute all my capital credits at the end of the year?

Capital credits must remain with your cooperative for a certain amount of time. They are used to pay operating expenses and to invest in new technology and services while providing quality services to our members.

 

How do I collect capital credits on an estate?

To collect capital credits for an estate, contact our team at capitalcredits@gopeoples.net for the necessary paperwork. If you would like to simply donate the balance on the capital credit account to our scholarship fund, we will be happy to send you the donation form.

 

Allocations and Retirements

Allocations are the amount that will be due to you at a later time based on your patronage. When the Board of Directors approves a retirement of capital credits, they will determine the fiscal year(s) and portion to distribute.

 

What if I disconnect service?

Capital credits that were allocated during the time you were a member will be retired (returned) to you as they are approved for distribution even if you are not an active member. So be sure to update Peoples with mailing address and contact information.

In our 65 plus years Peoples has distributed $11,484,374.06 in capital credits to our members.