In November, Hancock-Wood Electric received the results of our special election. Members were asked to vote on a Code of Regulations change to reduce the number of districts in our service area from 10 to 9. The code change passed overwhelmingly, so the next step is to redistrict.

What is redistricting? Basically, our existing voting districts will be consolidated into nine by moving members in the eliminated district into neighboring districts. Per our Code of Regulations, the cooperative redistrict to ensure equitable distribution of members in each of our districts, and our engineering team worked with your board of trustees to determine the best way to make the needed changes based on the location and number of current members.

This change will attempt to simplify district lines and minimize splits within townships. Essentially, the approved change is to remove the District by redrawing voting district lines and merging this area into neighboring districts. Former Districts will then be renamed. These changes are depicted in the map below. Our research showed that many other co-ops in Ohio and surrounding states have fewer board members; we have been one of the very few cooperatives. Having an odd number of board members also helps reduce the possibility of a tied vote.

Another benefit of the code changes that the membership approved is that having one fewer board member will cost savings to the cooperative. In June, the membership voted to change the nomination process and move to a petition system, which will save the cooperative about $19,000, per year; reducing the number of districts will save another $20,000  annually. Please feel free to call our office at 800-445-4840 or email us at info@hwe.coop if you have any questions about redistricting. See more detailed maps of each district here.