Era of higher utility bills awaits California electric customers, says report

摘要

California electricity rate increases continue to outpace inflation, and the trend could lead to customer bills exceeding national averages, state regulators reported to the California legislature and governor. While electricity rates in California historically have been higher than in most other states, customers there generally have gotten lower bills by comparison because they use less electricity due to energy efficiency, climate and other factors, according to the state Public Utilities Commission. However, utility revenue requirements continue growing to meet statutory mandates and operational needs, the PUC said in one of several recent annual reports. The result is that low usage no longer is offsetting the impacts of rising utility rates in some areas of the state. A dramatic hike in wildfire damages could accelerate the trend toward rising rates, the PUC said, noting that the costs of proposed utility wildfire mitigation plans could result in monthly bill increases of up to 7% for some customers. Rate and bill impacts from liability for past wildfires remain unknown. But if ratepayers are required to pay large portions of those expenses, their bills could increase substantially beyond the costs of existing programs and wildfire mitigation plans, the PUC said in its report on actions to limit utility rate increases. The report did not offer any specific solutions to that threat, however.