PG&E seeks 6% rate increase for all customers

By Santa Ynez Valley Star Staff · Tue Mar 17 2020

Staff Report

PG&E is asking state regulators to approve a rate increase for the 16 million people it serves, in part to pay for system improvements that would reduce fire hazards.

The company recently submitted its 2020 General Rate Case (GRC) to the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC).

If the CPUC approves the proposed increases, the average monthly bill for a typical residential electric and gas customer would increase by $10.57 a month, or 6.4 percent, in 2020. This includes $8.73 for electric and $1.84 for gas service, according to a PG&E spokesman.

“PG&E recognizes that any increase to a customer’s energy bill has a significant impact, and we are committed to keeping customer costs as low as possible, while ensuring we are meeting our responsibilities to safely serve our customers,” said Steve Malnight, PG&E Senior Vice President of Energy Supply and Policy.  

More than half of PG&E’s proposed rate increase would be directly related to wildfire prevention, risk reduction, and additional safety enhancements.

The application proposes measures in addition to those implemented after 2017 and 2018 wildfires to help further reduce wildfire threats. Proposed measures include risk monitoring and emergency response; adding new safety measures; increasing vegetation management; and hardening PG&E’s electric system to help further reduce wildfire risk.   

Components of the company’s plan include: