The second hearing will take place Wednesday when state regulators will look again at a proposed increase on another component of AES Ohio’s electric rates.
People will have a chance to comment on a proposed AES Ohio “electric security” operating plan in a public meeting at 6 p.m. Feb. 2 at Dayton City Hall commission chambers, 101 W. Third St.
That plan — first proposed in September — would impose new costs on a residential customer using 750 kilowatt hours (kWh) a month of less than $1 before rising to $4 a month in new costs.
According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, the average U.S. residential customer uses about 909 kWh per month. In Ohio, the average is closer to 892 kWh a month.
That plan — sometimes called an “electric security” plan — would (if approved) become AES Ohio’s “standard service offer” default rate — the price for electric generation service for customers who do not participate in a government aggregation program or pick a retail electric supplier on their own.
The plan depends on approval by the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO), which scheduled the Feb. 2 hearing in Dayton.
Residents can also address written comments to PUCO at 180 E. Broad St., Columbus, Ohio, 43215. Comments should reference case docket number 22-900-EL-SSO.
And this week: PUCO members Wednesday will consider a separate AES Ohio rate case — a proposal to increase AES Ohio rates for electricity distribution.
The distribution increase first sought by AES Ohio in the fall of 2020 would have amounted to a 14.3% increase in customer bills.
If the commission passes what PUCO staff has recommended, a customer using 750 kilowatt-hours a month would see a 5.47% increase in their bill. A staff report puts that bill increase at just over $4 monthly.
“Especially given soaring energy prices and inflation, this is not the time for AES’s proposals to increase the electric rates of Dayton-area consumers,” said J.P. Blackwood, a spokesman for the Ohio Consumers’ Counsel. “We have presented our evidence to the PUCO for why it should completely deny AES’s proposed rate increase this week. We hope the PUCO will protect consumers.”
AES Ohio provides electric transmission and distribution service to more than 527,000 customers across its 6,000 square mile service territory in west central Ohio.
How to watch public hearing Wednesday
A hearing on that is set in Columbus, and it can be watched on the PUCO’s YouTube channel, https://www.youtube.com/@PUCOhio. The hearing is at 1:30 p.m.
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