Something to Celebrate

90 years of rural electrification

As the United States prepares to celebrate a historic milestone this summer, electric cooperatives across the country are preparing to recognizing one of their own this month.

On May 20, we mark 90 years since the Rural Electrification Act of 1936 was signed into law by President Franklin D. Roosevelt—an achievement that transformed life as we know it here in rural America.

While the Rural Electrification Administration, or REA as many know it as, had been established the year prior, it initially lacked consistent funding from the government that was needed to make widespread rural electrification a reality. After a year of hard work and much advocacy, supporters of rural America succeeded in securing the resources necessary to bring electricity to communities that had long gone with out it. That moment laid the foundation for the creation of electric cooperatives, including us at Salt River Electric.

In those early days, electricity was more than a convenience for local farms and homes—it was a lifeline. It allowed farmers access to better resources, improved wellbeing in homes, and helped release rural communities from drudgery. The impact of that progress is still felt today.

Over the years, our system has grown and evolved to meet changing demands. We have invested in infrastructure, strengthened reliability and embraced new technologies to ensure we’re prepared to meet an ever-increasing demand. While much has changed since 1936, our purpose has not.

Salt River Electric remains committed to the same goals we were founded on: providing safe, reliable and affordable electricity to our members. As a cooperative, we are guided by the needs of the communities—and individuals—we serve. You’re a member, not a customer, and every decision made by your board keeps your interests at the forefront.

As we celebrate rural electrification, I think back to what former general manager J.S. Broaddus said when celebrating the REA’s 35th anniversary in 1970: “Numbers and dollar signs cannot convey the achievement of the Salt River Rural Electric.”

Ninety years after the passage of the Rural Electrification Act, that truth still holds. The impact of rural electrification—and of cooperatives like Salt River Electric—can’t be measured in miles of line or balance sheets, but in the strength of the communities we serve and the lives we’ve helped to power and transform every day.