Revenue collected from members is called patronage. As a non-profit electric utility, Heartland needs only to cover the cost of yearly operations, and keep sufficient cash on hand for capital needs. After meeting the cooperative's financial obligations, margins are allocated to the members as capital credits.
As a co-op member, you share in the margins of Heartland. The longer you use the service and the more service you use, the more capital credits you accumulate. The actual cash amount (retirement) you receive is determined by the cooperative Board of Directors and is usually a percentage of your total usage amount.