Being a Cooperative Pays Off: KIUC Members Receive Patronage Capital

Being a Kauaʻi Island Utility Cooperative member-owner paid off this spring when KIUC’s democratically elected board of directors voted to return $3 million in patronage capital retirement to members in May. This was the largest retirement of patronage capital since 2018.  

“Based on favorable financial results for 2025, KIUC is in a strong position after more than two decades of responsible financial management,” KIUC Board Chair Allan Smith says.

Since becoming a cooperative in 2002, KIUC has built $120 million in equity and retired nearly $40 million in patronage capital to its members.  

This is the first time in KIUC’s 23 years of operation that patronage capital from previous years was retired. Approximately $664,000 of the retirement was related to margins earned during 2025. The remainder, roughly $2.4 million, was returned to members based on their use during 2003 and 2004.  

Members received their patronage capital in the form of credits to their acount. The status of the patronage capital account was on their May 2026 billing statement. For members without an active account, KIUC mailed a check to the address on record.  

“This is a celebratory milestone for our cooperative,” President and CEO David Bissell says. “If we were an investor-owned utility, that money would go to the company or to shareholders. Instead, the money stays in our community and back into the hands of our member-owners.”  

What Is Patronage Capital?

Patronage capital is created when KIUC’s annual revenues exceed expenses. These net operating margins (i.e., profits) are allocated annually to members’ individual patronage capital accounts proportional to the amount of electricity they bought throughout the year. This is the member’s equity in KIUC.  

KIUC’s board of directors determines how and when capital credits are retired to members. The amount of patronage capital credited to members as a retirement depends on what timeframe they were a KIUC member and how much electricity they used.

For more FAQs about patronage capital, visit kiuc.coop/patronage-capital.

Update Your Contact Information

To receive notices and future refunds, members must update their correct address with KIUC. If moving, KIUC recommends members update their address with KIUC every five years.  

Call KIUC at 808.246.4300 for more information.