We are organized as a trade association under IRS code section 501(c)(6) and are known as The Electric Cooperatives of South Carolina, Inc. (ECSC).
We’re owned by the organizations we serve, 18 independent electric distribution cooperatives, one materials supply cooperative, one wholesale power supply cooperative and one transmission service cooperative. We were formed to provide our members with commonly needed services that are more efficiently delivered by one provider: communications and legal services, personnel training, safety programs and public and government relations.
ECSC and its member organizations are all private businesses owned by their members. ECSC exists to provide products and services for its users—its members. In that regard, it is similar to the Associated Press (news organizations), Ocean Spray (fruit producers), Ace Hardware (local hardware stores) and credit unions (financial services users). As private businesses, neither we nor our members are owned in any way by local, state or federal governments. However, we believe that we are accountable to our owners to use our resources wisely, and we want to be transparent to the broader community as well.
Each member organization is represented by two representatives on the ECSC Board of Trustees. The board meets six times per year, and an Executive Committee of the board meets in alternate months.
As do similarly organized entities, ECSC completes an IRS Form 990 and IRS Form 990-T each year that lists its expenditures. ECSC also further compiles its expenditures to comply with Act 56, a law passed in 2019 by the S.C. General Assembly that addresses governance of electric cooperatives. We also have provided our ECSC Disclosure as required by law.
