ATLANTA — Millions of Georgia Power customers will see a small decrease in their electric bills beginning June 1 after state regulators approved agreements that lower fuel costs and spread out the cost of cleaning up damage from Hurricane Helene.
The Georgia Public Service Commission voted unanimously on May 28 to approve separate agreements covering fuel costs and storm recovery expenses. Together, the changes are expected to lower the bill of a typical residential customer by about $4 per month.
The fuel-cost reduction comes as Georgia Power customers continue to face higher electricity bills, driven by a series of rate hikes that company officials attribute to inflation, rising fuel prices, and other economic factors.
“It’s great to be able to offer some relief to Georgia Power ratepayers,” Commission Chairman Jason Shaw said in a statement after Thursday’s vote.
Proposals for more savings rejected
The commission was considering two major expenses that customers ultimately pay for through their power bills: the fuel used to generate electricity and the cost of repairing storm damage.
The lower fuel charges more than offset the storm recovery costs of Hurricane Helene — the most destructive storm in Georgia Power’s history. As part of the agreement, the commission will also investigate how large customers, including data centers, are charged for fuel costs to ensure those expenses are not being shifted to residential customers.
Democratic Commissioner Peter Hubbard proposed several changes that he said would have further reduced costs for Georgia families. His amendments included additional reviews of Georgia Power’s fuel practices and changes to how storm recovery costs are handled.
Hubbard sought to expand the scope of a future investigation into fuel costs by requiring a review of pipeline transportation cost allocations, the effectiveness of the company’s natural gas hedging program and the use of coal-fired generation when lower-cost alternatives may have been available.
Commissioner Hubbard also proposed an amendment that would have reduced the fuel cost recovery balance by $15.2 million, which he said represented 10% of the estimated cost of dispatching resources uneconomically when less expensive options were available.
Each proposal failed on a 3-2 party-line vote. Fellow Democrat Dr. Alicia Johnson voted in favor of the amendments. The commission’s three Republican representatives – Shaw, Lauren “Bubba” McDonald, and Tricia Pridemore — voted against them.
Hubbard criticized the commission’s decision.
“We missed opportunities to save Georgia families another $50 million,” Hubbard said in a statement. “Instead, the majority voted to put the company first. That’s not why voters sent us here.”
Changes take effect June 1; same day summer rates rise
Despite those disagreements, all five commissioners ultimately voted in favor of the final fuel-cost and storm-recovery agreements. Before adjourning the meeting, Shaw praised commission staff and the parties involved in negotiating the agreements.
“The work does not go unnoticed. The results do not go unnoticed. The savings to ratepayers do not go unnoticed,” Shaw said.
The changes take effect June 1, the same day Georgia Power’s higher summer rates begin. While the approved agreements will reduce bills compared to what they otherwise would have been, increased air-conditioning use during the summer could still lead to higher monthly bills as temperatures rise.
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WABE’s Emily Jones and Grist, a nonprofit environmental media organization, contributed to this report.
