RENO, Nev. — Dozens of homeowners and environmental advocates were at two Public Utilities Commission of Nevada (PUCN) consumer sessions Wednesday to speak out against NV Energy’s proposed base rate hike, which is nearly triple the current rate.
NV Energy’s basic service charge currently sits at $16.50, with the proposed rate hike raising that to $45.30.
According to a statement from the energy company, the new rate would “improve the reliable and safe electric and natural gas service for all customers.”
But with the proposed base rate so much higher than the current one, environmental activists said there will be much less incentive for people to conserve their energy use if their bills are already so high regardless of how much they use.
“With this rate increase, that will disincentivize people getting rooftop solar because there’s no financial gain in it when you’ve got a $45 base rate, and we are very much under-utilizing the sun here,” one NV Energy consumer and environmental advocate, Bill Miller, said.
Another big concern among ratepayers is how people who are on fixed incomes, like seniors and people with disabilities, will be disproportionately impacted by the new rate.
“As someone who is on a fixed income, retired, it’s onerous. It’s preposterous. It’s cruel, that people on fixed incomes who use very little energy are now going to be charged three times as much, $45 before they’ve turned on a light switch,” Miller said.
NV Energy said the new rate would not increase average customer bills, though many of the people who spoke at the meeting said the $45 rate is far higher than their monthly bills.
