Money Matters

Looking for Relief From Sky High Utility Bills?

If, like most residents in L.A. County, you opened your gas bill and nearly fainted when you read the amount due, you’re wondering if there has been some kind of mistake. And while yes, with the colder weather you may have turned the heat up during one of the colder than normal winter nights, you can’t imagine that the sky high rate is the result.

Well, it probably won’t make you feel any better, but you’re not alone. Gas bills have doubled–if not tripled–for most, due to historically high natural gas prices in the western United States. In fact, an announcement from Southern California Gas Company to its customers read, “There’s no easy way to put this: January bills are likely to be shockingly high.”

If that weren’t bad enough, Edison is seeking to increase its rates by 4.4% effective June 1, due to the impact of the high natural gas prices on its operating costs. The L.A. Department of Water and Power has not said how much their rates could be affected, but a rate hike is not expected before April.

California Governor Gavin Newsom also took action urging the federal government to investigate the recent price spike affecting the Western U.S. and highlighted the state’s action to provide relief to Californians.

In a letter to the federal agency responsible for regulating wholesale natural gas, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), the Governor requested that the agency “immediately focus its investigatory resources on assessing whether market manipulation, anticompetitive behavior, or other anomalous activities are driving these ongoing elevated prices in the western gas markets.”

On Thursday, the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) voted to accelerate the California Climate Credit to help California families with high gas bills. The $90-$120 credit will be applied to residential utility customer bills starting in March for customers of PG&E, Southern California Edison, San Diego Gas & Electric, and Southern California Gas Company. Customers of Bear Valley, Liberty, PacifiCorp, and South-