April 2006
A new program that provides rewards for our customers is being introduced in April. With the Simply Better Rewards program, you earn points that can be redeemed for a variety of merchandise. Learn more
Earth Study Grant Winners were announced in March. Seven Texas teachers will claim $1,000 in funding for educational programs. Learn more
We heard you. Customer surveys told us that our phones needed to be answered in Texas. And now, they are! Learn more
Tax credits are available in 2006 and 2007 for energy efficiency improvements. Information about the kinds of
improvements that qualify for these credits are now available on our Web site. Learn more.
Introducing Simply Better Rewards
At First Choice Power, our customers are very important to us. That’s why we are implementing a new program on April 1 that is designed to provide rewards to customers in a way that’s unique among retail electric providers in Texas.
The Simply Better Rewards program will give customers the opportunity to earn Rewards points based on, among other things, bill amount and timely payment. As your points accumulate, you will have the opportunity to redeem them for your choice of popular merchandise. The more points you accumulate, the higher-value merchandise you can get. Rewards include name-brand items such as Panasonic DVD players, Calphalon® cookware, Canon digital cameras, Black and Decker power tools, iPods and Kate Spade handbags.
In addition, you can earn even more points by referring new customers to First Choice Power. Beginning April 1, you can earn 1,000 points for each new customer you refer to us. And if you refer five new customers who enroll by May 31, you can earn 15,000 bonus points. (New customers must identify the existing customer who referred them to First Choice when signing up for service, and the new customer must remain a customer for at least three months before points are awarded.) Points are posted quarterly.
"We hope our customers will enjoy this program," said Laurie Harrington, marketing manager. "It provides rewards simply for doing the things most of them are doing anyway – using electricity, paying their bills on time and telling friends and neighbors about us."
Simply Better Rewards will be available to all First Choice Power customers, but you must enroll online or by mail in order to participate. Full details will be available online at www.simplybetterrewards.com beginning April 1.
Earth Study Grant Winners Named
The First Choice Power Fund recently notified seven Texas teachers that they are recipients of $1,000 Earth Study Grants which are provided to incorporate environmental awareness ideas into their classrooms. The First Choice Fund is a division of the PNM Resources Foundation.
The winners are:
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Stephanie Magness from Hood-Case Elementary in Alvin for “Kinder ‘Garden’ Watching Children & Nature Bloom”
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Linda Walker from Hughes Road Elementary School in Dickinson for “Weather Walkers in a Texas Wildscape”
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Sylvia Bell from Kermit I.S.D. for “EARTH PLAY: Exploration and Research To Help Preschoolers Learn Young”
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Margaret Meadows of Northside Elementary in Angleton for “Getting the Dirt on Soil”
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Cheryl Scarborough, also from Northside Elementary in Angleton for “School Greenhouse Project”
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Patrick Turner from Prairieland Junior High School in Pattonville for “Environmental Commercials”
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Rose González from West Columbia Elementary School for “Kinder-Garden”
The Earth Study Grants were offered to full-time K-12 teachers and pre-K teachers with an early-childhood license from schools served by First Choice Power and to teachers who are customers of First Choice Power.
Winners of Classroom Innovation Grants will be announced soon, and Partnership Grant information and applications are available online through June 15, 2006.
Calling for Assistance?
Texas-Based Service Awaits
With a state as unique as ours, customers don’t want to talk to someone halfway around the globe about their electric service. You want someone who understands your local service needs.
At least that’s what you have told us through our regular customer satisfaction surveys. Because of that feedback and to provide you with service that’s simply better than any other electric company, we have moved all of our call center operations back to Texas.
Previously, while many of our calls were handled in Texas, some were handled at an overseas call center. Other companies in Texas still have most of their calls answered by outsourced customer representatives in other countries.
In 2006, Cut Your Taxes, Slice Your Energy Bills
In the February issue of Choices, we told you about tax credits available for energy improvements made in 2006 and 2007. We now have more information available online about the kinds of improvements that qualify.