National Rural Electric Cooperative Association

The National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA) represents the interests of over 900 electric cooperatives in the United States. Cooperatives are not-for-profit and are owned by their membership. Founded in 1942, NRECA unites the country's generation, transmission, and distribution cooperatives found in 47 states, serving over 40 million people.^[1] It is headquartered in Arlington, Virginia, and since 2016 its CEO has been former U.S. Congressman Jim Matheson.^[2]

AbbreviationNRECA

Formation1942

TypeTrade association

HeadquartersArlington, Virginia, United States

Quick facts Abbreviation, Formation ...

National Rural Electric Cooperative Association

Abbreviation	NRECA
Formation	1942
Type	Trade association
Headquarters	Arlington, Virginia, United States
Membership	900+ electric cooperatives
Chief Executive Officer	Jim Matheson
Website	www.electric.coop

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Electric cooperatives serve 12 percent of the nation's population, yet own 42 percent of America's distribution lines covering three-quarters of the country. Currently, over 90% of electric cooperatives include renewable generation in their portfolios, receiving 11 percent of their total power from renewable sources compared to 8 percent for the entire utility sector.^[3]

In December 2020, co-ops under NRECA won $1.6 billion from the FCC's Rural Digital Opportunity Fund to provide rural broadband service to approximately 900,000 locations. In February 2021, NRECA's Matheson filed an appeal to the FCC for also awarding SpaceX's Starlink internet service funds. SpaceX was awarded $886 million to cover nearly 650,000 locations. Matheson noted the Starlink service was "still in beta testing - not a proven technology".^[2]