The Effort to Fix California's Electricity Pricing
Source: Palo Alto Online | By Sherry Listgarten
Effective energy pricing is key to transitioning away from fossil fuels. Americans are not always great at following rules but we are excellent at following prices. If we align our pricing with the transition we need to see, then we will see it. If we don’t, we won’t. That is why we must fix California’s electricity pricing.
The last proposal I will reference is a joint proposal from NRDC and The Utility Reform Network (TURN), an advocate for ratepayers. They split the difference, coming in between most of the other proposals, making some compromises but achieving the essence of what AB 205 calls for. They advocate for modest fixed charges based on three income levels. Rates go down in their scheme, but not to the degree that they go down for the IOUs. Affordability improves, but not as much as it does with the Sierra Club or CEJA proposals. Bills go up for higher-income customers, but electrification can save them money. “Coastal high tier customers for each IOU generally more than double their savings under our new electrification rate proposal relative to the existing rate.” NRDC and TURN seem to be aiming for something that will make things better, be politically palatable, and not be too hard to implement.
