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Utility seeks rate hike to make up for virus-related losses
May 20, 2021
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BURLINGTON, Vt. (AP) The Burlington Electric Department is proposing a rate increase for the first time in a dozen years to make up for pandemic-related losses.
The utility wants to raise the rate 7.5%, which on average means an increase of about $60 for residential housing and $80 more a year for the average commercial building, WCAX-TV reported.
“Raising rates is an absolute last resort measure for us, which is why we’ve been able to go 12 years without doing so,” said Burlington Electric’s General Manager Darren Springer.
While residential electricity use increased early in the pandemic as many people stayed home, commercial use, which makes up about 75% of the utility s income, plunged.
 New Braunfels Utilities said Monday it was confident it could maintain competitive rates following last weekâs winter storm event that resulted in rotating power outages throughout the state, but the exact impact on electric rates and customer wallets remains unclear.
Although there have been reports of retail electric bills in the thousands of dollars in some parts of Texas, NBU said this would not happen in New Braunfels.
According to Melissa C. Krause, NBUâs chief operations and strategy officer said the utility operates a power supply program designed to reduce volatility and maintain a competitive price.
âGoing into this event, NBUâs electric bill was among the very lowest in the region,â Krause said. âNew Braunfels Utilities passes on the cost of energy purchased in the ERCOT market to NBUâs customers with no markup. New Braunfels Utilitiesâ hedging program and reserves policy greatly insulated our customers from last weekâs u