REED
For more than 60 years, electric cooperatives in eastern South Dakota have partnered in numerous ways to grow our rural areas. The Rural Electric Economic Development Fund is but another example.
Established in 1996, REED’s $20-million loan pool has helped finance more than 100 projects that created or retained some 3,000 jobs in several of our smaller communities.
The REED Fund targets the following three areas:
- Business, Industrial Development and Infrastructure. Loans are made for business and industrial projects to support start-up, development, expansion and attraction, and to stimulate self-employment, business expansion, job creation and retention. REED loans benefit retail, service, tourism, and manufacturing sectors.
- Agriculture Development. To recognize agriculture’s impact on the region’s economic base, REED makes loans to support projects that add value to agriculture production through innovation, improved services, further processing or marketing.
- Community Development. Because community services and quality of life are necessary for sustainable development, loans for community facilities and capacity building projects are an important aspect of the REED Fund. Borrowers are generally community organizations, educational institutions, or local governments. REED’s financing for community development has extended to healthcare, childcare, distance education, fire protection, community facilities, public recreation and the arts.
As an organization of cooperatives, REED is committed to reinvesting in our local communities, which just happens to be one of Touchstone Energy’s core values.
For more information, contact Codington-Clark Electric Co-op’s business office and ask about REED.
