Members Find Efficiency, Clarity in Enhanced CFC Form 7 

As electric cooperatives prepare to submit  2025 year-end financial data, early feedback from members suggests CFC’s updated Form 7 is already delivering gains in efficiency, clarity and ease of use. 

The redesigned CFC Form 7 reflects CFC’s broader effort to modernize financial reporting while reducing administrative burden. Enhancements for the 2025 reporting cycle include a refreshed layout, new dataimport functionality and expanded analytical capabilities through Power BI dashboards—updates members say are making the process faster and more intuitive. 

More Streamlined Reporting Experience 

One of the most immediate improvements members noted is the updated structure and navigation of the Form 7 workbook. 

“The new CFC Form 7 format is much cleaner and more streamlined than in years past,” said Tim Shafer, vice president and chief financial officer of Missouri-based White River Valley Electric Cooperative (WRVEC). “CFC has removed several of the old working tabs and integrated Power BI tools to simply review your cooperative’s financial analytics.” 

Becky Bradburn, chief financial officer and vice president of finance for Pierce Pepin Cooperative Services in Wisconsin, pointed to the redesigned homepage as a key improvement. 

“I like the updated homepage because it consolidates the landing page and all the software instructions into one location at the front of the workbook,” Bradburn said. “No more scrolling through individual worksheets to find key resources. The new layout is more intuitive, and it still includes all the data entry worksheets and data check features that were available in previous versions.” 

Time-Saving Automated Data Import 

A major enhancement to the Form 7 was the introduction of a new CFC data import file, which incorporates prior-year CFC Form 7 data, billed debt service for CFC and CFC-serviced loans, and historical Key Ratio Trend Analysis (KRTA) ratios. 

For Shafer, the impact was immediate. 

“Importing CFC Form 7 data was seamless and only took about 15  minutes from start to finish,” he said. “In a total of about 25 minutes, our data submission was complete.” 

Bradburn emphasized the value of the import feature, particularly for cooperatives with more complex organizational structures. 

“It was extremely easy to use and saved me a significant amount of time,” she said. “The import itself took maybe 30 seconds. This is especially valuable for me because my cooperative has multiple divisions and a subsidiary.” 

Building Toward Deeper Insights 

The 2025 reporting cycle also introduced new CFC Form 7 Financial and Operational Dashboards built in Power BI to support in-year board reporting, data validation and analysis. These dashboards align with similar tools available through CFC BudgetPro, helping create a consistent analytical framework across financial planning and reporting. 

“Our team at WRVEC uses all of CFC’s financial tools,” Shafer said. “The ability to transition from one tool to another is fantastic and saves us a lot of time.” 

Members can access a comprehensive user guide and the new Financial and Operational Dashboards through the CFC Member Website. Completed forms must be submitted digitally by April 30.