"Compare Texas suppliers" advice does not apply to PEC members.
Most Texas energy advice assumes you live in a deregulated zone served by an IOU with a separate REP. PEC is not that. PEC is a member-owned cooperative that has not opted into retail choice, so the Power to Choose marketplace returns zero plans for any address it serves.
Second, PEC's bill is vertically bundled: one organization owns the wires, buys the power, sets the rate, returns the margin. There is no separate TDU line and no REP line , just PEC. That is why the same dollar saving you would chase by switching REPs has to come from somewhere else here: usage, billing setup, or the capital-credits cycle.
Third, PEC operates inside ERCOT just like every other Texas utility, but it is regulated by its own elected member-board, not by the Texas PUCT in the same way. Rate changes are voted on internally.
How a PEC bill is built. Three layers, one provider.
Unlike a retail-choice Texas bill (REP plus TDU plus fees), a PEC bill is a single statement from a single organization. Three layers, all set by your co-op.
Layer 1 , Power
Base energy charge
6.59¢ per kWh starting March 1, 2026 (raised from 6.19¢). Covers PEC's own generation and wholesale purchases from LCRA plus the ERCOT market.
Layer 2 , Wires
Delivery
Per-kWh distribution component. In retail-choice areas this is a separate TDU charge from Oncor or CenterPoint; on a PEC bill it is bundled into the same statement.
Layer 3 , Fixed
Customer charge & PCRF
A flat monthly service charge for being connected, plus a PCRF rider that adjusts up or down each month as PEC's wholesale costs move. The PCRF is the line that moves outside an annual rate vote.
Every line on a PEC statement, decoded.
If you opened a PEC bill side-by-side with a Reliant or TXU Energy bill from across town, the same dollars would be sliced differently. Here is the map.
| Line on a PEC bill | What it is | Who sets it | Shop-able? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Base power charge | 6.59¢/kWh (March 2026) | PEC board vote | No (no REPs) |
| Delivery / distribution | Wires, poles, transformers, meter | PEC board vote | No |
| Customer charge | Flat monthly service fee | PEC board vote | No |
| Power Cost Recovery Factor (PCRF) | Monthly wholesale-cost pass-through | Updated monthly by PEC staff | Moves monthly |
| State sales / gross-receipts tax | Texas state revenue | Texas legislature | No |
A retail-choice Austin neighbor across the line would see a separate REP energy charge plus an Oncor TDU charge plus PUCT-approved riders. On a PEC bill everything except state tax is approved by the same elected board.
PEC's bundled rate undercuts retail-choice Texas by ~25%.
At 1,250 kWh, PEC's base power line alone is $82 (6.59¢ × 1,250). The same usage at the Texas retail-choice average of 14.92¢/kWh would put your energy line at $187 before any TDU charge.
Add a typical co-op customer charge and delivery component, and the all-in PEC bill at 1,250 kWh still lands roughly 25% below the Texas retail-choice average and roughly 38% below the US residential average of 17.91¢/kWh.
And the money does not stay in shareholders' pockets. As a co-op, PEC returns margin as capital credits: $10 million returned to current and former members in January 2026, more than $193 million returned cumulatively since 2007. Average member return per cycle: around $22.
estimated all-in PEC bill
How PEC actually sets the rate you pay.
A co-op rate is not handed down by a state commission. It works its way through five steps inside the membership.
Elected 7-member board
PEC is governed by seven directors elected by member-owners from seven geographic districts across the Hill Country. Each member-account has one vote.
General manager & staff
A general manager runs day-to-day operations: dispatching crews, maintaining ~8,100 sq mi of lines, billing 300,000+ accounts, contracting wholesale power.
Annual budget & rate filing
Each year staff propose a budget covering operations, debt service on G&T wholesale contracts, capital projects, and any rate change. The board votes , the 2026 increase from 6.19¢ to 6.59¢/kWh (~3.2%) went through that process, raising the typical 1,250 kWh bill by roughly $5/month.
PCRF runs monthly
Between rate votes, PEC's Power Cost Recovery Factor recalibrates monthly against actual wholesale costs from LCRA and the ERCOT market. It can rise or fall , no board vote required.
REA roots, 1938
PEC was incorporated in 1938 under President Roosevelt's Rural Electrification Administration, championed in Congress by a young Texas Hill Country representative named Lyndon B. Johnson. The low-interest federal REA loans put lines into farms and ranches that no investor-owned utility had been willing to serve.
Five mistakes PEC members make that cost real money.
Patterns we see across Hill Country member bills. Each is fixable in under an hour.
Tornado, hail and ice: what PEC outage protocol looks like.
The Hill Country sees supercell thunderstorms, hail, and isolated tornadoes every spring, plus the occasional damaging ice event in winter. Long rural feeders mean a single downed tree can drop service to a wide ranch corridor.
Report an outage 24/7 to 888-883-3379 or text OUTAGE to 25022 from the phone number on your member account. PEC's online outage map updates in near-real-time during major events; SmartHub push alerts let you confirm restoration without calling.
For life-safety emergencies (downed live wire, structure fire) call 911 first, then PEC.
What to actually do with your PEC bill.
Skip Power to Choose
PEC is not in retail choice. Any kWh saving has to come from usage, budget setup, or capital-credit follow-up , not from switching REPs.
Enroll in SmartHub
Hourly meter data, outage alerts, paperless billing, and the form to file a usage-anomaly dispute all live in one app.
Activate budget billing
If your house relies on central AC, budget billing flattens July spikes into a level monthly draw. Same yearly total, no summer cliff.
Vote in PEC board elections
Seven elected directors set rates and budget. As a member-owner you have one vote per account in your district. Annual ballots open in spring.
Apply for energy assistance
PEC participates in LIHEAP and Texas CEAP via local community action agencies. Eligibility is income-based; awards offset bill balances directly.
Visit the Cedar Park office
In person at 1949 W Whitestone Blvd, Cedar Park 78613, Mon-Fri 8 a.m.-5 p.m. , call 512-331-8883 first to confirm wait times.
Common questions about PEC in Cedar Park.
No. PEC has not opted into Texas retail competition, so Power to Choose returns no plans for any PEC service address. Your only provider is the cooperative itself. If you move into a CenterPoint, Oncor, AEP or TNMP territory, retail choice applies and you can shop REPs there.
The base power charge is 6.59¢ per kWh effective March 1, 2026, raised from 6.19¢ as part of the 2026 Rate Update , a roughly 3.2% bump that adds about $5 to a typical 1,250 kWh monthly bill. Delivery, the customer charge and the monthly Power Cost Recovery Factor are billed separately on the same statement.
As a member-owned cooperative, PEC returns net margin to current and former members proportional to past usage. The board allocates credits each year and retires older years on a rotating cycle. PEC returned $10 million in January 2026 and has returned more than $193 million cumulatively since 2007, averaging around $22 per member per cycle. Keep your forwarding address current , uncashed checks for departed members eventually escheat after the statutory window.
For outages call PEC 24/7 at 888-883-3379 or text OUTAGE to 25022 from the phone number registered on your member account. For non-emergency questions during business hours, call the Cedar Park office at 512-331-8883 or member service at 888-554-4732. For life-safety emergencies , downed live wire, structure fire , call 911 first.
Yes , by member count. PEC serves 300,000+ members across 24 Texas Hill Country counties spanning roughly 8,100 square miles. That puts it ahead of every other US distribution cooperative on member rolls. It is not the largest by revenue or geographic area, but on members served PEC has held the top spot for years.
PEC was incorporated in 1938 as a Roosevelt-era Rural Electrification Administration cooperative. The Texas Hill Country was one of the last large US regions still without grid power, and investor-owned utilities considered the long lines to farms and ranches uneconomic. A young congressman named Lyndon B. Johnson lobbied the REA into funding the lines , federal low-interest loans that built the cooperative. Hill Country residents got electric pumps, milking machines and indoor lighting for the first time.
More U.S. states with energy choice
Same playbook, different utility. Pick another deregulated state to compare utilities, suppliers and switching rules.
