Patronage Capital	12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2017
Patronage Capital [Abstract]
Patronage Capital	(9) Patronage Capital Chugach has a Board-approved capital credit retirement policy, which is contained in Chugach’s Financial Forecast. This establishes, in general, a plan to return the capital credits of wholesale and retail customers based on the members’ proportionate contribution to Chugach’s assignable margins. At December 31, 2017, Chugach had $172,928,887 of patronage capital (net of capital credits retired in 2017), which included $166,880,163 of patronage capital that had been assigned and $6,048,724 of patronage capital to be assigned to its members. At December 31, 2016, Chugach had $169,996,436 of patronage capital (net of capital credits retired in 2016), which included $164,182,580 of patronage capital that had been assigned and $5,813,856 of patronage capital to be assigned to its members. Approval of actual capital credit retirements is at the discretion of the Chugach Board. Chugach records a liability when the retirements are approved by the Board. Chugach entered into an agreement with HEA to return all of its patronage capital within five years after expiration of its power sales agreement, which was December 31, 2013. This patronage capital retirement was related to a settlement agreement associated with the 2005 Test Year General Rate Case (Docket U-06-134). The RCA accepted the parties’ settlement agreement on August 9, 2007. We finalized a new agreement with HEA in September 2017 which spread their retirement payments between 2017 and 2020 in increments of $2.0 million annually. As a result, $2.0 million of HEA’s patronage capital was retired and paid in 2017, and $2.0 million of HEA’s patronage capital was reclassified to a current payable under other current liabilities leaving $3.9 million in long-term patronage capital payable at December 31, 2017. HEA’s patronage capital payable was $7.9 million at December 31, 2016. In an agreement reached in May of 2014 with MEA, capital credits retired to MEA are classified as patronage capital payable on Chugach’s Balance Sheet. MEA’s patronage capital payable was $4.9 million and $4.1 million at December 31, 2017 and 2016, respectively. The Second Amended and Restated Indenture of Trust (Indenture) and the CoBank Second Amended and Restated Master Loan Agreement prohibit Chugach from making any distribution of patronage capital to Chugach’s customers if an event of default under the Indenture or debt agreements exists. Otherwise, Chugach may make distributions to Chugach’s members in each year equal to the lesser of 5% of Chugach’s patronage capital or 50% of assignable margins for the prior fiscal year. This restriction does not apply if, after the distribution, Chugach’s aggregate equities and margins as of the end of the immediately preceding fiscal quarter are equal to at least 30% of Chugach’s total long-term debt and equities and margins. Capital credit retirements authorized by our Board, less early retirements, were $2,631,928, $3,001,426, and $3,007,772 for the years ended December 31, 2017, 2016, and 2015, respectively. With the exception of MEA’s and HEA’s patronage capital payable, the outstanding liability for capital credits authorized but not paid at December 31, 2017, 2016, and 2015 was $57,036, $2,014,080, and $2,105,440, respectively.

(9) Patronage Capital

Chugach has a Board-approved capital credit retirement policy, which is contained in Chugach’s Financial Forecast. This establishes, in general, a plan to return the capital credits of wholesale and retail customers based on the members’ proportionate contribution to Chugach’s assignable margins. At December 31, 2017, Chugach had $172,928,887 of patronage capital (net of capital credits retired in 2017), which included $166,880,163 of patronage capital that had been assigned and $6,048,724 of patronage capital to be assigned to its members. At December 31, 2016, Chugach had $169,996,436 of patronage capital (net of capital credits retired in 2016), which included $164,182,580 of patronage capital that had been assigned and $5,813,856 of patronage capital to be assigned to its members. Approval of actual capital credit retirements is at the discretion of the Chugach Board. Chugach records a liability when the retirements are approved by the Board.

Chugach entered into an agreement with HEA to return all of its patronage capital within five years after expiration of its power sales agreement, which was December 31, 2013. This patronage capital retirement was related to a settlement agreement associated with the 2005 Test Year General Rate Case (Docket U-06-134). The RCA accepted the parties’ settlement agreement on August 9, 2007. We finalized a new agreement with HEA in September 2017 which spread their retirement payments between 2017 and 2020 in increments of $2.0 million annually. As a result, $2.0 million of HEA’s patronage capital was retired and paid in 2017, and $2.0 million of HEA’s patronage capital was reclassified to a current payable under other current liabilities leaving $3.9 million in long-term patronage capital payable at December 31, 2017. HEA’s patronage capital payable was $7.9 million at December 31, 2016.

In an agreement reached in May of 2014 with MEA, capital credits retired to MEA are classified as patronage capital payable on Chugach’s Balance Sheet. MEA’s patronage capital payable was $4.9 million and $4.1 million at December 31, 2017 and 2016, respectively.

The Second Amended and Restated Indenture of Trust (Indenture) and the CoBank Second Amended and Restated Master Loan Agreement prohibit Chugach from making any distribution of patronage capital to Chugach’s customers if an event of default under the Indenture or debt agreements exists. Otherwise, Chugach may make distributions to Chugach’s members in each year equal to the lesser of 5% of Chugach’s patronage capital or 50% of assignable margins for the prior fiscal year. This restriction does not apply if, after the distribution, Chugach’s aggregate equities and margins as of the end of the immediately preceding fiscal quarter are equal to at least 30% of Chugach’s total long-term debt and equities and margins. Capital credit retirements authorized by our Board, less early retirements, were $2,631,928, $3,001,426, and $3,007,772 for the years ended December 31, 2017, 2016, and 2015, respectively. With the exception of MEA’s and HEA’s patronage capital payable, the outstanding liability for capital credits authorized but not paid at December 31, 2017, 2016, and 2015 was $57,036, $2,014,080, and $2,105,440, respectively.