LPDD

Pathway 5.

Electricity Decarbonization → Electricity Charges, Mandates, and Subsidies

5.6.11 Reducing Fixed Electricity Charges

LPDD Recommendation: “Where regulatory requirements and subsidies are not financed through public taxes, state utility commissions should presumptively favor per kWh customer charges rather than fixed fees or cost adders in setting customer energy charges.”

RAP report, Electric Cost Allocation for a New Era

Public Utilities, State Public Utility Commissions
Focuses on cost allocation practices for electric utilities and their implications, acknowledging that charting a new path on cost allocation is an important part of creating the fair, efficient and clean electric system of the future.

Black Hills Energy Fixed Charge Requests

Public Utilities, State Public Utility Commissions
In 2018, the Colorado Public Utilities Commission rejected the Black Hills Energy request for a fixed charge increase from $16.50/month to $20.13/month and recommended lowering it to $8.77/month.

Connecticut’s Acceptable Components of Utility Fixed Charges

Public Utilities, State Legislatures, State Public Utility Commissions
In 2015, Connecticut passed a law defining acceptable components of a utility fixed charge as the fixed costs, operations and maintenance expenses that are directly related to metering, billing, service connections and customer service.

Central Hudson 2017 Rate Settlement

Public Utilities, State Public Utility Commissions
In a 2018 settlement of Central Hudson's 2017 rate case, the utility's fixed charge will drop from $24/month in 2019 to $19.50/month in 2021.

Nix the Fix Fact Sheet

Public Utilities, State Public Utility Commissions
Indiana’s Citizen’s Action Coalition has launched a campaign against higher fixed charges in utility rates, producing a fact sheet documenting the adverse effects on equity, efficiency, and competitive markets posed by high fixed charges.

Fifty States Reports

Public Utilities, State Public Utility Commissions
Tracking, among other things, utility rate cases across the country to give a national snapshot of ratemaking trends.

Report, Recovery of Utility Fixed Costs

Public Utilities, State Public Utility Commissions
Surveyed the tensions between fixed and variable rates, as well as a variety of alternative rate structures, from the perspectives of utilities, consumer advocates, and environmentalists.