Mike Fosse

Dakota Electric Association is a member-owned, not-for-profit electric utility founded by local farmers in 1937 with the help of the Rural Electrification Administration. With more than 100,000 members, Dakota Electric is the second largest electric cooperative in Minnesota and ranked among the 25 largest electric dis-tribution cooperatives in the nation. Dakota Electric purchases wholesale electricity from Great River Energy, a generation and transmission cooperative in Maple Grove, Minn., and distributes electricity to homes, businesses and farms in parts of Dakota, Goodhue, Scott and Rice counties.

Touchstone Energy Cooperatives provides energy and related services to households and businesses. The alliance runs television ads on various channels, including CNN, ESPN, TNT, The Weather Channel, TBS, and The Learning Channel. It also places print ads in national magazines and newspapers. The company was founded in 1998 and is headquartered in Arlington, VA.