SUMMERDALE - Baldwin EMC has recently completed the payment of more than $13.8 million in taxes for 2011. This is a combination of payroll taxes, property taxes, state revenue taxes, and city license taxes.

City license taxes were delivered by Baldwin EMC Board Members and employees to each city within the cooperative's service area over the past month.

While cooperatives do maintain a not-for-profit, tax-exempt status, Baldwin EMC's Chief Executive Officer E.A. "Bucky" Jakins Jr. says that title can be misleading.

"Baldwin EMC is not-for-profit in that we only take in enough revenue to cover our operating costs," Jakins explains. "Anything in excess of that is refunded to our members."

Baldwin EMC actually pays a tax of three percent on gross revenue received from its members who live within a municipality's city limits. A tax of 1.5 percent is paid on gross revenue received from members living within a municipality's police jurisdiction.

Jakins says for 2011, the cooperative paid $978,419 in payroll taxes, $1,224,728 in property taxes, $8,814,370 in Alabama revenue taxes, and $2,810,131 in city license taxes, for a total of $13,827,648.