Pacific Power Proposes Surcharge Increase to Fund Rate Discounts for Low-income Washingtonians
Pacific Power has proposed a surcharge increase that would pay for a rate-discount program for Washington customers who face economic burdens. The proposed change would result in an overall average increase to Washington customers of approximately 0.9 percent. Pacific Power’s current residential base rate in Washington is 7.276¢ per kWh for the first 600 kWh and 10.198¢ per kWh for all additional kWh. If approved, residential customers would see a bill impact of $1.26 per month.
The goal of the increase is to help low-income Washingtonians pay their electric bills.
Pacific Power’s service area includes 233 communities in Oregon, Washington and California. Source. To view current Pacific Power rates in Oregon, Washington and California click here.
In July, the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission approved modifications to Pacific Power’s low-income assistance program in compliance with Section 12 of the Clean Energy Transformation Act and Senate Bill 5295. These changes eliminated the annual participant enrollment cap and will allow rate discounts of between 15 percent and 70 percent based on verified customer income levels. The increased surcharge would spread the cost of these discounts among all customers not qualifying for the discounts. Overall, Pacific Power estimates that there will be approximately $3.4 million in discounts per year under the new program.
The WUT Commission will examine Pacific Power's request. As a result of this examination, the Commission may determine that the schedule should be accepted as filed, modified, or rejected. If accepted as filed, the rate change would go into effect on Oct. 1, 2021.
The public has been invited to comment on the surcharge increase to the Commission. The Commission has the authority to set final rates that may be lower or higher than the Company's request, depending on the outcome of its investigation. You can comment by using the "Submit a Comment" feature at the Commission's website, at utc.wa.gov, or by using the contact information below.
Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission
P.O. Box 47250
Olympia, WA 98504
Email: comments@utc.wa.gov
Telephone: 1-888-333-WUTC (9882)
Commission staff will make a recommendation to the commissioners at a virtual open meeting. These meetings are regularly scheduled every other Thursday at 9:30 a.m. Please contact the Commission to request to be notified of the scheduled open meeting at which the proposal will be considered by the Commission. The public may provide comment during this meeting.
The UTC is committed to providing reasonable accommodation to participants with disabilities. If you need reasonable accommodation, please contact the Commission at 360-664-1132 or human_resources@utc.wa.gov.
For more information or to contact Pacific Power, please contact them toll free at 1-888-221-7070 or write to:
Pacific Power
825 NE Multnomah Street, Suite 2000
Portland, OR 97232
