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Rep. Sam Graves’ family farm is on electric cooperative lines in northwest Missouri, so he understands the key role that co-ops play in rural communities and works hard to ensure they can continue to provide reliable, affordable power, Missouri co-op leaders say.
“Over 80% of the land mass of Missouri is covered by electric co-ops,” says Caleb Jones, CEO and executive vice president of the Association of Missouri Electric Cooperatives.
“In rural Missouri, one of our biggest challenges is infrastructure. As chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, Sam Graves has made a real difference with roads, bridges and transmission systems. Every mile of that infrastructure is a reflection of his dedication to Missouri’s electric cooperative members.”
Graves has been a national leader in efforts to pass legislation to streamline the Federal Emergency Management Agency and dramatically speed up delivery of federal disaster relief funds to electric co-ops. He is sponsoring the bipartisan bill, the Fixing Emergency Management for Americans (FEMA) Act of 2025, with Rep. Rick Larsen, D-Wash.
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The bill passed Graves’ committee 57-3 in early September. NRECA has been working closely with the committee and other stakeholders to build support for full House passage as soon as possible.
“This will be the most comprehensive FEMA reform bill since Hurricane Katrina [over 20 years ago],” the Republican congressman told Punchbowl News founder Jake Sherman at a newsmaker event sponsored by NRECA last fall.
Graves said electric co-ops played a key role in crafting the legislation, which makes a number of improvements to FEMA in addition to speeding up aid.
The bill would allow co-ops to rebuild their systems stronger and keep in place FEMA’s essential Public Assistance program that provides funding to co-ops to restore power and rebuild their systems after hurricanes, wildfires, ice storms and other natural disasters.
The bill also includes a provision, championed by NRECA, that would reimburse co-ops for the interest they paid on loans to repair their systems while waiting years for FEMA funds to arrive.
Jones says a strong, effective FEMA disaster relief process is crucial in a state like Missouri, which was battered by more than 120 tornadoes in 2025—the third highest in the nation.
“Sam is working to make sure that, in times of disaster, co-ops will be able to get their members’ power back on as quickly as possible,” he says.
The congressman has supported federal grants for co-ops countless times, Jones says, including a FEMA mitigation grant for Atchison-Holt Electric Cooperative in Rock Port that allowed the co-op to harden its grid against future disasters.
“Sam Graves is dedicated to rural electric cooperatives more than any other member of Congress I’ve dealt with,” says Kevin Dechant, the co-op’s CEO and general manager. “He’s focused on ensuring the member-owners of Atchison-Holt Electric Cooperative keep their lights on and continue to get reliable, affordable power.”
Graves has also introduced legislation with Rep. Tracey Mann, R-Kan., that would establish a revolving fund for the Southwestern Power Administration, which provides hydropower to electric co-ops and municipal utilities in Missouri, Kansas, Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma and Texas.
“Missouri’s rural electric cooperatives and municipal utilities have worked with the Southwestern Power Administration (SWPA) to provide affordable and reliable electricity to Missouri families for over 80 years,” Graves said last year when he introduced the bill.
“But the way SWPA is set up, droughts and other disruptions can cause rate spikes that are passed on to co-ops and municipalities that have no choice but to increase electric rates on Missouri families. This commonsense legislation creates a revolving fund to fix that problem—giving SWPA the stable funding necessary to avoid costly rate spikes, and lower customer rates.”
The 62-year-old congressman is in regular touch with Missouri co-op leaders and is always accessible, Jones says.
“He’s somebody that if he says he’s going to do something, you don’t have to worry about it,” Jones says. “You can count on him. Especially at a time where I think a lot of politicians get a bad rap for what they’re doing or saying, Sam Graves is one of the few folks you’ll meet that you can take his word to the bank.”
Graves says that “rural electric co-ops play a vital role throughout my district in North Missouri.”
“Not only do they keep the lights on, but they are active in growing our communities and improving our quality of life,” he says. “Life in rural America would look a lot different if we didn’t have the RECs and I’m proud to do everything I can in Congress to ensure they are able to continue providing the excellent service they always have.”
