TX Energy Customers Need A Rate Cut

A coalition of Texas cities in the Houston-Galveston area has come together to demand a rate cut for the state’s energy customers. The area’s main electricity provider, CenterPoint Energy, has actually requested a rate hike. The cities have adopted ordinances that not only block this rate hike but demand a rate cut of nearly $150 million from the company. The coalition says that TX customers are already paying too much for electricity.

The Gulf Coast Coalition of Cities is a group of nearly three dozen different municipalities located along the Gulf of Mexico region. Their goal is to protect customers in all of the municipalities from unfair rate hikes. CenterPoint Energy serves approximately two million customers in the Houston-Galveston area including numerous customers in the coalition region.

One of the affected cities is Dickinson. Julie Johnston, Dickinson’s city administrator, is actively involved in helping to prevent rate hikes from occurring. She says that the coalition has collected evidence that the reason that CenterPoint Energy recently requested a rate hike is because it wants extra money to offset losses that it’s accrued thanks to bad investments. Those losses should not be passed on to customers who would end up adding approximately $111 million per year to the energy company’s pockets if their requested rates were approved.

This type of rate hike is unfair to customers everywhere. However, the coalition says it is particularly unfair to their customers because they are already paying more than average for their electricity. The coalition reports that electricity rates in the Houston-Galveston region are considerably higher than in other parts of Texas and higher than other nearby states as well. They say that not only should the rate hike not be allowed but that their customers actually deserve a rate cut.

The issue is now out of the hands of both the coalition and the electricity supplier. It has gone before the Public Utility Commission of Texas. The commission has until the end of the year to determine what their decision is. At that time, they may approve the rate hike or may even require the electric company to lower their rates. In the meantime, Texas customers can take things into their own hands by switching to a lower cost electricity provider than CenterPoint Energy. This would allow residents to start receiving a lower TX electric bill today.

Source: http://www.kansascity.com/2010/10/12/2302927/gulf-coast-coalition-of-cities.html