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Consumer group says PG&E rate hikes are overkill, utility says they're due to climate change
PG&E wants more money on top of the average $33 a month rate increase coming on New Year's Day. The utility says climate change is the reason for the hikes, but one consumer group says rate hikes are overkill.
OAKLAND, Calif. - Climate change has aggravated inflation, but nowhere more than with Pacific Gas & Electric, the first major utility to deal with far more effects of extreme weather related to fire and floods.
PG&E wants more money on top of the average $33 a month rate increase coming on New Year's Day.
Both 2023's and 2024's increases will be large. But PG&E says, this about the long run to harden the system against climate change: "We are working to keep customer costs at or below assumed inflation for the long-term, between an average of 2 and 4% a year."
Consumer group, The Utility Reform Network is hotly opposed. "It's gonna be between $12 and $20 additional each month. That's on top of the $33 that's coming January 1," said The Utility Reform Network’s Executive Director Mark Toney.
Here's the kicker. "They want them to start collecting in March, even before the CPUC [California Public Utilities Commission] has held a proceeding and decided whether PG&E should get paid back by rate payers; two billion dollars for overspending," said Toney. One more kicker. "Oh, PG&E has several requests for at least another $3 billion," said Toney.
A message is displayed on a wall inside the Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) Wildfire Safety Operations Center in San Francisco, California. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
Provided that they are not caused by PG&E equipment or negligence, the law permits utilities to ask the CPUC for new extra costs encountered to reduce wildfire risk or respond to emergencies such as wildfires and storms; costs that are more the CPUC originally granted. "I think it's a complete rip-off," said PG&E customer Ron Rosaia who we met in Walnut Creek who also said, "There's some people that I know personally, that are still trying to get money back from when their houses burned down up in Paradise and everything else. It's like they keep taking and taking and taking," said Rosaia.
PG&E customer Edward Voss is a retired accountant and auditor. "There needs to be serious auditing of this organization to make sure that they're not being wasteful, inefficient as passing costs onto people, particularly those that don't have income that are unfair," said Voss.
The CPUC, often criticized for being too ‘big utility’ friendly, has been asked to vote on this increase early next year.
Ratepayers share frustration over PG&E rate hike
CPUC voted on PG&E's "massive" rate hike. It also approved a proposal to take away many benefits given to solar power system owners to increase utility company incomes even further.