Q. What do I need to do to get a new service?

A. Consumers wanting a new service or meter installed at an existing location or a new location, need to call the office during normal business hours. 8:00am to 5:00pm, Monday thru Friday at 1.800.794.2353. A signed service application, a $5.00 membership fee, and a security deposit based on your consumer credit rating are the criteria that must be satisfied. These requirements must be met before the meter is reconnected, or the new service is built.

Q. How much does a new service cost?

A. If you are a member of CMS Electric Cooperative, Inc, a new service will cost you $30.00 for the connect fee, plus the monthly bills for whatever type of new service you request. This assumes that you will put the new service in the same name as your existing service. If you are not a member of CMS Electric Cooperative, Inc., you will need to pay a one time $5.00 membership fee, a $30.00 connect fee per account, and a security deposit which is based on your consumer credit rating.. If we need to build line to your new service please call the office for additional information on line extension costs.

Q. Where can I pay my bill?

A. Consumers may mail their bills to P.O. Box 790, Meade Kansas 67864, or should you prefer, pay at one of our two offices located in Meade and Coldwater. The Bank of Protection will also accept your payments in their office.

Q. When is my bill due?

A. Your electric bill is due on the 15th of every month, unless the 15th falls on a weekend or holiday. At that time, it would be due the next business day.

Q. Can I pay my bill directly from my checking account?

A. Yes, you can now pay your electric bill directly from your checking account. Interested consumers need to bring in a voided check and sign an authorization form. It's that simple. If consumers have any additional questions they can call the office from 8 am to 5:00 pm, Monday thru Friday.

Q. Can I set up my account on some kind of budget billing?

A. Yes, we can set your account up on an even monthly payment plan. CMS takes your bills for the last twelve months and averages them to get your budget payment amount. This service is only available for residential consumers and has several other stipulations, so consumers interested in this plan should call the office and speak with our billing representative.

Q. Does CMS take credit cards?

A. No, we do not take credit cards or debit cards at this time.

Q. When is my meter read?

A. CMS is excited to announce the implementation of the AMR system. Automatic meter reading, or AMR, is the technology of automatically collecting consumption, diagnostic, and status data from electric energy metering devices and transferring that data to a central database for billing, troubleshooting, and analyzing. This advance mainly saves utility providers the expense of periodic trips to each physical location to read a meter. Another advantage is billing can be based on near real time consumption rather than on estimates based on previous or predicted consumption. This timely information coupled with analysis, can help both utility providers and customers better control the use and production of electric energy consumption. CMS will have all meters on this new system sometime in 2011.

Q. What do I do when I have a power outage?

A. You should always call our toll free number when you experience a power outage. Often consumers don't call because they think someone else will report the outage. Sometimes however, they are the only one affected by the outage. As a rule, consumers should always call the office to report things that they feel are important. Your calls help us to isolate the source of the outage more quickly. Downed power lines, poles, and equipment are all good examples of things to call the office. Report any blinking or dimming lights that you might see at your house. Call our toll free number, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The toll free number is 1.800.794.2353 and our local number is 1.620.873.2184.