Nevada Current reports on the Public Utilities Commission of Nevada's (PUCN) vote to reject NV Energy's proposal to triple the basic service charge from $16.50 to $44.50. The article quotes United's Emilie Olson, who touts this as a victory for consumer protection and for green energy,
In a rare victory for NV Energy consumers, the Public Utilities Commission of Nevada voted Tuesday to reject the utility’s bid to nearly triple the basic service charge for Northern Nevada customers from $16.50 a month to $45.30 a month, “a number that I believe is much too high,” Commissioner Randy Brown said during the hearing.
The commission instead approved a $2 monthly increase to $18.50.
“This is an increase of 12% as opposed to the 175% increase Sierra Pacific has asked for,” Brown said, adding the hike in the service charge “balances the need for Sierra Pacific to cover rising fixed costs while still adhering to the principles of gradualism in rate-making that protects customers from rate shock.”
Critics said NV Energy’s proposed hike was designed to protect the utility’s revenue streams from competition with solar and other green technologies.
Low-income residents, those on a fixed income, and customers who invested tens of thousands of dollars in rooftop solar, told the PUC they would be disproportionately harmed by the massive proposed hike in the monthly service charge.
NV Energy’s proposal, which was confined to the north, was designed to stabilize energy bills, according to the utility, which sought to increase its rate of return to investors from 9.5% to 10.4%. However, the PUC approved a 9.65% return on equity for Sierra Pacific’s electric division and a 9.5% return on equity for its gas division.
The PUC’s action is a victory for consumer protection and for green energy, says Emilie Olson of Advanced Energy United, a trade group for renewable energy companies.
“We were worried the increase would be a disincentive to consumers who are exploring energy conservation – retrofits to their homes or rooftop solar – largely for economic motivations,” Olson said during an interview, adding other consumers who are motivated by environmental sustainability could get “slapped with a fixed charge regardless of what choices they make. It seems punitive.”
The $2 increase will appear on customers’ bills in January 2025.
Read the full article here.