How Three New Rate Hikes Will Impact your PG&E Bill
Source: SF Chronicle | By Julie Johnson
The California Public Utilities Commission voted Thursday to allow PG&E to collect $38 next year, or about $3.20 per month, from average residential customers — slightly less than PG&E requested — to keep the Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant in San Luis Obispo County running longer than planned. Commissioners also approved PG&E’s plan to charge average residential customers $18 next year, about $1.50 monthly, to cover other annual costs for generating and buying electricity. Another increase approved Thursday won’t hit customer bills until March 2025: $40 per residential customer collected over 12 months, or about $3.40 monthly, for the company’s 2020 tree trimming costs. That year, the state stepped up its oversight of the company’s vegetation management work due to wildfire safety concerns.
“The rates need to come down,” said Matthew Freedman, a staff attorney with The Utility Reform Network, an advocacy group for ratepayers. Electricity rates have increased more than 50% compared to 2022 and by about 80% compared to 2020, according to Freedman. Freedman said the Public Utilities Commission is considering additional electricity rate increases for 2025. “The fact that Jan. 1 rates are relatively flat compared to 2024 is not encouraging,” Freedman said.
