For Immediate Release | February 24, 2017
Tucson, Ariz. – Tucson Electric Power (TEP) will award $135,000 to help local nonprofit groups expand educational opportunities, protect our environment and support limited-income assistance programs through its Community Impact Grants.
Application forms and guidelines will become available on TEP’s website at tep.com/community beginning on Wednesday, March 1. Applications must be submitted online by 5 p.m. on March 29 to be considered for funding.
TEP Community Impact Grants are available to organizations in TEP’s service territory and in the White Mountains communities near TEP’s Springerville Generating Station. Grants will be awarded this spring to nonprofit groups that provide services in three focus areas:
- Education. Eligible programs may include enrichment activities for preschool through 12th grades, classroom supplies and field trips, teacher support and science, technology, engineering, art and math (STEAM) activities.
- Environmental protection and sustainability. Local or statewide programs and projects that support efforts to preserve and protect air, land, water and habitat may qualify.
- Community Assistance. Qualifying programs provide services for limited-income families and individuals affected by homelessness, domestic violence, poverty, child abuse and substance abuse.
TEP Community Impact Grants are awarded annually through a competitive process. TEP employees select grant recipients based on the effectiveness and sustainability of the proposed programs. Applicants must demonstrate at least three years of financial and organizational stability and meet other criteria. At least 85 percent of grant funds must be used to pay for program costs.
TEP Community Impact Grants, like the company’s other community investments, are funded from corporate resources, not customers’ rates. TEP’s award-winning community service efforts include direct contributions, in-kind services and volunteer support for local nonprofit groups. Last year, TEP and Its sister company, UniSource Energy Services (UES), contributed $1.8 million to charitable causes. The companies’ employees also joined their friends and family in contributing more than 22,000 volunteer hours to hundreds of nonprofit groups.
TEP provides safe, reliable electric service to approximately 417,000 customers in southern Arizona. To learn more, visit tep.com. TEP and its parent company, UNS Energy, are subsidiaries of Fortis Inc., which owns utilities that serve more than 3 million customers across Canada and in the United States and the Caribbean. To learn more, visit fortisinc.com.
News Media Contact: Joseph Barrios, (520) 884-3725, jbarrios@tep.com
