PORT TOWNSEND – The temporary increase in monthly electricity bills for residential customers of Puget Sound Energy will average 13.2 percent, or $10.28 for someone using 1,000 kilowatt-hours a month.
PSE serves Port Townsend and surrounding areas of East Jefferson County, except for Brinnon and Quilcene, which are served by Mason County Public Utility District No. 1.
The increase won’t apply to commercial or industrial customers of PSE nor to customers of public utility districts such as Clallam County PUD – which provides electricity to the Port Townsend Paper Corp. mill – or Mason County PUD, Grays Harbor PUD that serves Kalaloch Lodge or the city of Port Angeles.
The announcement of the pending increase was made last month following a 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals decision that the Bonneville Power Administration exceeded its authority in establishing the “residential and small farm exchange credit.”
The decision stemmed from a lawsuit by Clallam PUD, Snohomish PUD and about 70 other public utilities in the state against Bonneville.
Although it wasn’t a rate increase, removing the credit from the bill required approval from the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission, which was granted Wednesday.
But although investor-owned utilities such as PSE and public utilities such as Clallam PUD both get their energy from Bonneville, the increase in PSE bills won’t mean an immediate corresponding decrease in public utility bills.
“Until Bonneville reduces our wholesale rates, we won’t be reducing our retail rates,” said Larry Dunbar, power resources manager for the city of Port Angeles.
Fred Mitchell, Clallam PUD’s power resources and telecommunications manager, said that corresponding rate reduction has been the public utilities’ argument to Bonneville.
“We’ve said we should expect to see some reduction in our rates, but Bonneville has been reluctant to do that.
“Discussions ongoing in that regard given the court’s decision but that could take awhile,” he said.
