Electricity bills for Puget Sound Energy (PSE) residential customers will increase by 3.2 percent while natural gas bills will rise by 1.3 percent as a result of action taken by state regulators today. New rates go into effect Monday.
The Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission (UTC) is allowing PSE to raise electric rates by $63.3 million a year and $13.4 million for natural gas rates. That’s less than the $161 million and $32 million, respectively, the utility originally requested last June. The last PSE rate increase approved by the commission was two years ago.
The average PSE residential electric customer using 1,000 kilowatt hours-per-month will see their electric bill increase by $3.30. The typical natural gas customer using 68 therms a month would pay $1.08 more.
Beginning Jan. 1, PSE electric customers will receive an annual bill credit for their share of the proceeds and benefits from the utility’s sale of surplus Renewable Energy Credits. The average residential electric customer will receive a bill credit of about $8.28 a year.
