SoCalGas’ proposed $4.9-billion revenue hike plan sparks outrage amid soaring bills
Source: Los Angeles Times | By Terry Castleman
Despite public outcry over unusually high natural gas prices this winter, utility executives sought Monday to justify a proposal to generate nearly $5 billion in additional revenue from customers over the next four years.
Constance Slider Pierre, an organizing director at the Utility Reform Network, a consumer advocacy nonprofit, spoke out against the proposed rate increases.
The proposal, she said, was “unacceptable” and would make it difficult for gas customers to recover from recent price surges. By her estimate, customers would pay an additional $264 per year on natural gas by 2027 if the revenue hikes were approved.
Higher prices would “disproportionally affect low-income families,” Pierre argued, noting that Sempra Energy, the parent company of SoCalGas and SDG&E, made more than $2 billion in profit in 2022.
