By Shannon Lukens for Steamboat Radio/Blizzard Broadcasting.
Your monthly energy bill is going up. Yampa Valley Electric Association has announced a rate increase that goes into effect April 15. Residential rates are going up by 5.4%. For the average household, that’s an increase of $7.80 per month, according to YVEA. The last rate increase was in 2024.
Yampa Valley Electric is a member-owned electric cooperative with 23,000 members, covering 7,000 square miles of territory, serving Craig, Hayden, Steamboat Springs, and Yampa, also Baggs and Savery, Wyoming. YVEA does not serve the town of Oak Creek but the areas around Oak Creek.
Press Release from YVEA – YVEA Announces Rate Increase Effective 4.15.16
Press Release from YVEA; March 2, 2026.
Headline: YVEA Announces Rate Increase Effective April 15, 2026
March 2nd, 2026 – On February 25th, 2026, Yampa Valley Electric Association’s Board of Directors, with the assistance of YVEA employees and consultants, voted on a rate increase that will go into effect on April 15th, 2026.
YVEA hired a consultant to conduct a Cost-of-Service Study (COSS) to determine whether YVEA’s rates accurately reflect the cost of providing services across all of our rate classes. A COSS is a tool used throughout the utility industry to help ensure each rate class pays its fair share of costs. Additionally, they review our financials to ensure our rate recovery covers our financial obligations.
Based on the COSS results, YVEA will need to raise rates across all rate classes. “Raising rates for our members is never an easy decision for YVEA,” said Scott Blecke, CEO of YVEA. “All of our employees live and work in the communities we serve, and we understand the significance of raising rates.”
“Our internal teams and our outside consultant have been working hard to ensure we are recovering costs in a way that makes sense for our business,” said Emily Zvorak, Director of Finance. “We see four main factors driving this rate increase – power supplier costs, transmission costs, maintaining and investing in our infrastructure, and the rising cost of doing business.”
Over half of YVEA’s annual budget is almost entirely comprised of power supply costs, which means that any wholesale power provider increases can have an impact on YVEA’s budget. “As a distribution co-op that relies on our wholesale power provider to deliver electricity to us. If our power provider commits dollars to improving its infrastructure, we can see those dollars reflected in our wholesale power and transmission costs. Over the previous 3-5 years, on a statewide basis, Colorado experienced significant utility investment statewide, all supporting new generation and transmission infrastructure. The statewide investment trend is expected to continue, and YVEA anticipates meaningful upward pressure on future generation and transmission costs in Colorado. Blecke went on to explain. “As we transition to Guzman Energy in 2028, we will see aspects of the generation and transmission costs stabilize, YVEA will continue to receive power through Xcel’s transmission system, and will need to budget for increased transmission costs.”
YVEA is committed to maintaining and investing in our infrastructure. “YVEA makes every effort to have our equipment last as long as is practical and safe,” said John Cromer, Director of Operations. “For example, most of our distribution poles were installed between 1970 and 2000. We have worked to maintain and ensure these poles meet our safety standards while also taking practical measures to ensure they last in our harsh conditions.” YVEA conducts annual pole inspections to ensure our equipment meets our safety standards, which include traditional ground-up visual inspections and, now, drone-based overhead inspections.
“By investing in new technology, we can be more proactive in our construction work plan and help keep our system reliable and responsive,” added Jim Cross, Director of Engineering. “We unfortunately have seen a weather pattern this winter that has the potential to lead to an increase in Red Flag Warnings and YVEA needing to put our system into Fire Protection Mode. By making investments in our systems today, we are hoping to protect the communities we serve tomorrow.”
YVEA’s last rate increase happened in 2024, and residential rates increased by 4%. With the new rate increase, residential rates will be raised by 5.4%. For the average household that uses 894 kWh, its bill will increase by $7.80 per month. In 2024, YVEA raised the energy charge for residential members, and in 2026, members will see increases in both the energy rate and the system access cost. The system access cost is a fixed monthly charge that recovers some of the fixed costs associated with serving an individual member, regardless of how much electricity they use.
“We recognize that any cost increase impacts household and business budgets, which is why we don’t take these rate increases lightly, and look at the most cost-effective way to ensure we are sound financially while also being fair with the amount we recover,” said Blecke. “YVEA offers various programs to help assist our members if they are having difficulties paying their bills.” This can range from budget billing and the Rays Up Community Solar garden, which offers bill offsets, to helping members connect with external agencies.
For full details on the rate increases for all services, please visit www.yvea.com.
About Yampa Valley Electric Association
Yampa Valley Electric Association (YVEA) is a member-owned electric cooperative serving nearly 27,000 customers over 2,840 miles of line covering a 7,000 square-mile service territory in northwest Colorado and southern Wyoming. We provide safe, affordable, reliable power and efficient energy services to members. We help our communities thrive by striving to provide innovative, affordable and environmentally sound solutions, while fostering leadership and growth throughout our region. More information is available at www.yvea.com.
For media inquires, please contact: Carly Davidson cdavidson@yvea.com 970-871-2211