There are some annoyances in life that are minor enough to be ignored. They don’t bother me at all unless I am reminded of them, and even then I forget about them quickly. One such annoyance is my Kaysville City Utilities Service Bill.
Although my utility bill arrives promptly each month it is just four times a year that the aggravation arises. To be specific it is the billing for the December, June, July and August electricity use that is the source of irritation. Not the cost of the power but the way the power is billed.
I will explain.
The first 1,000 kilowatt hours of residential electricity is priced at 9 cents per kilowatt hour (kwh). Thereafter the price rises to 10.85 cents per kwh. That is an increase of 20.6% in the unit price cost. Take a look at my January bill:
There is no indication that the usage of 1,265 kilowatt hours for a cost of $118.75 is any different than last month, except it is higher. Yet the numbers do not add up, unless you know of the two-tier rate. To demonstrate:
Kaysville City Residential Energy Rates
Single tier — 1,265 x $0.09 = $113.85
Two-tier — 1,000 x $0.09 + 265 x $0.1085 = $90.00 + $28.75 = $118.75
Perhaps the biggest disapprobation is that there is no indication on the bill that an additional charge is being added.
In a Good Cause
Well, you say, the additional fee is for a good cause. Probably to reduce global warming by encouraging conservation. Or perhaps to offset the same tiered charges the city pays on the open market. Very unlikely I reply. This is because the commercial rates are tiered, but in reverse. In other words, commercial users obtain a discount the more energy they use, which of course is how many products are sold. Consider:
Kaysville City Commercial Energy Rates
First 1,000 kwh — 9 cents per kwh.
Next 9,000 kwh — 6.5 cents per kwh.
All additional kwh — 4.75 cents per kwh.
Perhaps I am missing something here and my readers have an explanation. In the meantime Kaysville City has proposed an increase to power rates of around 7.5 to 8 percent. The last increase was 7.5% in May 2007.
These increases cause me no irascibility. But the hidden tier is reason for vexation. But only a little, and not for long — and soon forgotten.
Electricity rate source: Consolidated Fee Schedule 2009 (PDF), see page 8. If no longer available at the source, try this link.
Let’s take this to the city council meeting.
I had someone at church today tell me he had read the post and had no idea that there was a two-tier system. He said he was going to check his utility bills. So when is the next council meeting?
Rickety,
Thanks for the post! I come across your blog every now and again, and enjoy reading it. Especially when you posted the picture of you and I together. :)
You raise a very valid question about power rates, and I think it is fair to raise the question to the city council. I believe there is a little more to the Comercial rate structure such as “Demand Charges”, but I won’t try to address that here. You raise a very valid question, that should be addressed.
Our next City council meeting is Tomorrow (Tuesday, June 1st). The regular meeting starts at 7:00pm, but there is a public hearing to discuss the budget. That meeting starts at 6:00pm, and would be an appropriate time to ask the question.
Thanks again for raising the concern, keep up the good work!
Mayor Steve Hiatt
Mayor,
Thank you for the personal response. I thought that perhaps there was more to the charges, and learning about demand charges adds an additional dimension that I hadn’t considered.
All I am asking is that the tiered system is clearly marked on the bill so that a customer knows the additional cost when they exceed 1,000 kwh. It appears that this would involve a change in the software, though some of the changes are already in place evidenced by the tier calculations being correct.
An additional request would be to set the tier a little higher if there must be a tier. However, I would not be very disappointed if the request was not granted. I know that you all do a great job there at city HQ and you know all about supplying power. I just use it all up.
Rickety,
Thanks for taking the time to address the City Council last night. I sincerely appreciate your taking the time to share your concerns. You gave good, constructive feedback, and did so while remaining a gentleman (the best way to get results).
Your suggestions were right on, and I believe we will see them in upcoming utility bills. It might take some time to modify our software programming to implement the changes, but it will come.
Thanks again.
Mayor Hiatt
Mayor,
Thanks for the encouragement, I enjoy living in Kaysville. You had quite a crowd at the meeting and handled them well.