Together, all of us are a key part

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1 408 College St. W. P.O. Box 120 Fayetteville, TN Toll-free: Website: Office Hours: Monday - Friday 7:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. Dispatch Hours: Seven days a week 24-hour emergency response To make doing business with FPU more convenient, we offer the following services: energy right Programs Bank Draft Budget Billing Project Help Delayed Payment Medic Alert Surge Protectors Security Lights Electric and Natural Gas Grills Natural Gas Space Heaters, Logs and Mantel Kits Cable TV and High-Speed Internet Access Voice-over IP Digital Phone Service Dial-Up Internet Service Call the FPU Customer Service Department for details at Follow us on Twitter Playing a key role in our community Together, all of us are a key part of our local community and economy. We provide good jobs to folks who live right here your neighbors and friends. We deliver goods and services that keep our communities humming. We re happy to lend a hand when we re able, and we enjoy being involved with schools and community organizations. We all pull together to make Fayetteville and Lincoln County what they are today. This is true of Fayetteville Public Utilities. Our team of employees works to ensure the best for the community not only during work hours to provide reliable and affordable utility services but also after hours. Many of our employees volunteer as firemen and first responders in their communities, risking their own lives to help others. Many coach Little League and youth soccer or football teams. Some serve on the boards of nonprofit organizations while others teach Sunday school classes and mentor youth groups of all ages. It all revolves around being part of this community. We all have a way of giving back to the community in which we live and work, and the benefits of having a company like FPU are many. From small rural towns to large metropolitan cities, utilities are the culmination of that particular American ideal of local people working together to meet local needs. Because FPU is owned, operated and controlled on a local basis, we determine how utility services are provided in the community. We work with area city and Britt Dye CEO/General Manager county governments and the local industrial development board to plan the design and aesthetics of electric distribution systems, telecommunications and natural gas infrastructures, water treatment plants and water tanks and wastewater treatment plants for future growth. Local control means matching local resources to local needs and offering special programs (energy efficiency and conservation, economic development incentives, etc.) to benefit citizens. There are numerous ways that FPU helps to maintain and improve a sound local economy: We make significant contributions and payments in lieu of taxes to local governments. These payments are similar to and often much greater than the tax payments that would be made by a private utility. Municipal utilities serve as an engine for economic development. Local flexibility, reliability and quality service offered by municipal utilities are major advantages for the community in attracting and retaining commercial and industrial customers. On average, our rates are competitive with those of other utilities. Competitive rates mean that more dollars are available to spend on other goods and services, boosting the local economy. Fayetteville Public Utilities and its employees are proud to be a part of this community. Everything we do is in the best interest of our customers and the growth of our community. Together with your support, we ll continue to make a positive difference. 16 The Tennessee Magazine

2 Planning for winter weather, outages Most Southerners know that we sometimes get our coldest, roughest winter weather in February and March. And although Fayetteville Public Utilities doesn t expect any utility outages, it s always best to be prepared. Here are a few winter preparation tips for you and your family to make utility outages a bit more bearable should they occur this year: Listen to local weather forecasts every day so you ll know when high winds and heavy snows or ice are on the way. That kind of winter weather is most likely to affect power lines and possibly other utility infrastructure. Prepare an emergency/outage kit that contains items needed during a wintertime power outage. A list of suggested items is provided to the right. Have your grill and grilling supplies handy in case you can t use your electric or natural gas stove. If you don t have a grill, consider buying a camp stove and fuel that you can use outdoors during this time. When not in use, they re smaller and easier to store than an outdoor grill. Tape Fayetteville Public Utilities phone number, , and your electric account number on your refrigerator so they will be handy if you must report an outage. Pile a few extra blankets and sweaters together so you can find them easily if the heat goes off. Dress in layers to stay warm. Teach children to stay away from fallen or sagging power lines, which could be energized and dangerous, even if the power is out. Review and practice your home exit plan in case of fire. Make sure each family member knows how to safely exit the house and where to meet outside the home in an emergency. Remember: If your power does go out, turn off the breakers to all major appliances in your home like heating units, refrigerators and others to help FPU crews energize the electric load and restore power successfully. Once power is restored, you can turn your appliance breakers on. Our hope is that bad weather will spare us and we won t have any weather-related outages this winter. But if we do experience wintertime power outages, we ll restore service as quickly as possible. Being prepared now for the worst of winter weather will help you and your family be ready for what lies ahead. Emergency and outage supply kit battery-powered radio battery-powered NOAA weather radio fresh batteries of all sizes (C, D, AA, AAA and 9-volt) flashlights candles matches canned and nonperishable food manual can opener extra baby items extra medicine and first-aid supplies wind-up clock bottled water (enough for one gallon of water per person per day, for at least three days) paper plates plastic cups and utensils multipurpose tool antiseptic/antibacterial wipes extra blankets extra pet supplies (food, water, blanket) back-up heating source and needed fuel grilling supplies fire extinguisher extra gasoline for vehicles cash (for emergencies if ATMs are out of service) Februar y

3 FPU honors years of service At the end of 2011, FPU honored 13 of its employees who reached milestones in their careers with the utility. Their years of service 145 years combined were celebrated with plaques of appreciation and applause from fellow employees. Leading the list was Dale Moran, recognized for 25 years of service. Others receiving service awards were Crissy Hopkins, Erskin Hampton and Joe Self for 15 years each; Odessa Dangerfield, Jackie Logan, Shannon Honea, Troy Mitchell, Brandon Young and J.W. Brown, 10 years; and Mike Bland, David Buchanan and Mark Dempsey, five years. These employees have dedicated a total of 145 years to their jobs and also to the customers of FPU who live and work in this community, says Britt Dye, FPU CEO/general manager. So many of our employees not only serve the community while at work, but they also serve by volunteering their time and talents to many civic organizations, charities, church groups, youth sports, children s activities and more. We appreciate each of our employees for their service to Fayetteville and Lincoln County. We appreciate all they invest in improving our community. Dale Moran, left, is congratulated for his 25 years of service by FPU CEO/General Manager Britt Dye. From left, Mike Bland, Mark Dempsey and David Buchanan receive their five-year awards from Dye. With Dye, above from left, are 10-year award recipients Shannon Honea, Odessa Dangerfield, Jackie Logan, Troy Mitchell and Brandon Young. At right, from left, Joe Self, Crissy Hopkins, Erskin Hampton receive 15-year awards from Dye. Attention all Budget Billing customers: If you participate in FPU s Budget Billing Payment Plan, please remember that the month of May has been set aside as the Budget Billing catch-up month. This means that you will see either an additional debit or credit amount on your May billing statement to balance your budgeted billing for the past 12 months. Please look for further details about the Budget Billing catch-up month in our next issue of The Tennessee Magazine. 18 The Tennessee Magazine

4 Electric right-of-way program assures service reliability Wintertime may slow certain outside work, but at Fayetteville Public Utilities, our rightof-way maintenance program and tree-trimming efforts continue. Although wet yards and fields have slightly hampered tree-trimming this winter, crews continued to work in many areas to clear overhead power lines of tree limbs, brush and vegetation that pose potential threats to service reliability. FPU s continuous tree-trimming program is one of the most important things we do to ensure that you have quality electric service. The fact is that maintaining the electric right of way (20 feet from the center of the power line) is FPU s responsibility as your utility provider to ensure safe and reliable electric service 24 hours a day. The FPU tree-trimmers are willing to work with every customer to reach the best solution on trimming and removing trees that interfere with your quality of service and pose a threat to * The national average is 5 hours per customer annually. our system s distribution lines. While we generally avoid removing the tree when side pruning and crown reduction will satisfy both of us, in extreme conditions tree removal may be the only feasible solution if customer safety is of concern. FPU and its contractors maintain more than 1,900 miles of line in our service area. From July to December 2011, the crew had already cleared miles of line. Our customers have been very cooperative with us, comments Lewis Steelman, operations supervisor for FPU s Electric Department. They have realized the importance of FPU clearing the electric lines of these trees. By staying on top of new tree growth each year and closely watching for trouble areas, we have been able to maintain one of the lowest outage times in the nation. FPU remains well below the national average for annual power outage hours per customer. Much of the credit for FPU s short outage time is due to our tree-trimming program. Tree-trimmer Rickey Darnell prunes limbs away from the power line. SAVE ENERGY. EARN EVEN MORE CASH! CASE CLOSED. $100 instant rebate! You can now save even more money when you request an In-Home Energy Evaluation. Instant rebate offered for a limited time only. Sign up for the In-Home Energy Evaluation and pay only $50. That s $100 off the standard $150 fee with your instant rebate. If you make recommended eligible improvements costing $150 or more, the $50 fee will be reimbursed. Plus, the improvements you make are eligible for reimbursement of 50 percent of the installation costs, up to $500. Call for details, or visit EnergyRight.com. Februar y

5 Save money with digital phone service from FPU Voice-over Internet Protocol Get digital phone service from Fayetteville Public Utilities and enjoy big savings on long-distance calls. FPU now offers digital phone service through your high-speed Internet or cable connection. Sometimes called Voice-over IP, the digital phone service offers many of the amenities as your current hard-wired phone service, but you benefit by omitting long-distance charges in all 50 U.S. states and Canada with our unlimited phone service. International calls made outside these areas may be assessed long-distance charges. The digital phone service from FPU is offered at different levels so you can select the one that s right for Basic Phone Service With FPU Internet and Cable $27.95 Total bundled service package* $91.45 With FPU Internet or Cable $32.95 Total bundled service package** $51.46 Without FPU Internet or Cable $42.95 you! You ll be able to bundle your FPU services and select from the options below. There is a $30 activation fee for either Unlimited or Basic phone service. Call Fayetteville Public Utilities at today to install your new digital phone service! It s convenient, it s affordable and it s technology at its best! And best of all, it s brought to you by your hometown service provider, FPU! Unlimited Phone Service With FPU Internet and Cable $29.95 Total bundled service package* $93.45 With FPU Internet or Cable $34.95 Total bundled service package** $58.46 Without FPU Internet or Cable $44.95 *Prices include FPU s digital phone service, Budget Basic cable package and 3 meg Internet service. Prices do not include taxes. **Prices include FPU s digital phone service and Budget Basic cable package. Prices do not include taxes. Budget Billing offsets higher bills Surprises. There s a time and a place for them. But one place we don t like surprises is on our utility bills. Fayetteville Public Utilities Budget Billing payment plan can help take the surprise out of both electric and natural gas bills by budgeting your monthly payments. The payment plan works to shift some of the higher bill amounts from summer and winter, when they re normally higher, to your lower months in spring and fall. This process helps to offset the deficit amounts and helps you better control the amount of your bills year-round. Budget Billing is a rolling average, not a set amount each month. The rolling average keeps the current year s electric and natural gas use reflected in the bill averaging calculation rather than basing the current year s billing on last year s use. To participate in Budget Billing, please come by Fayetteville Public Utilities at 408 College St. W. and apply in person. A customer service representative will be glad to help you and can easily give you an estimated amount of your average billing. Budgeting your electric and natural gas bills is a great way to help control your utility costs as well as your family s budget. If you have questions about the Budget Billing payment plan, please call us at The Tennessee Magazine