Jefferson County Public Utility District commissioners heard at a Nov. 10 hearing seeking input for a rate increase plan, in which the PUD needs to include energy conservation and low-income subsidies as part of the process.

"Providing financial incentives will encourage ratepayers to use less energy,” said Tom Engel of Port Townsend. "Therefore, the most effective rate structure to increase revenue and encourage conservation is to have a low monthly base rate, tiered usage rates, and to increase rates for consumption rather than the base rate. A low base rate also makes it obvious to ratepayers that they can control their electricity bill through their usage."

About 25 people attended the two-hour public hearing, which took place in the conference room at the East Jefferson Fire Rescue station in Chimacum.

The matter was scheduled to be addressed and discussed at a regular meeting on Tuesday, Nov. 15, but would most likely not be approved at that meeting, said general manager Jim Parker on Monday. He said it would most likely be approved at the Dec. 13 meeting.

Parker said that Thursday night’s statements would not carry a lot of weight in and of themselves because "they've heard almost all of it before."

"There is no disagreement that we need to pay our debt; how we increase the rates is a matter that we are here to discuss," said PUD board president Ken Collins. "This can has been kicked down the road enough times, we are now in a cul-de-sac."

The PUD hired EES Consulting of Seattle to look at rates to ensure that all users were paying a fair rate. The firm made several recommendations that the PUD did not adopt, Collins said, including the establishment of a surcharge for solar installations and not providing low-income assistance.

The PUD has not raised rates since it purchased the power system serving most of East Jefferson County from Puget Sound Energy (PSE) for $115 million in April 2013.

If the rate hike that has been discussed is approved, electricity customers would see the first increase in January 2017, with the monthly base rate jumping from $7.49 to $14.50. The monthly base rate is paid by every customer regardless of the amount of energy consumed.

An additional $2 would go into effect on June 1, a 1 percent increase on consumption.

Of that proposed increase, about $2 would be set aside to help low-income persons pay their power bills.

WEATHERIZATION

Collins said the PUD plans to hire a "weatherization specialist" who can work with low-income people and help them to make their homes more efficient and to lower their utility bills. This service is currently provided by resource manager Bill Graham.

This was challenged by a commenter who said she "wants to determine what charity I contribute to, so I can have the benefit of a tax deduction."

Collins said that more active solar support is necessary, and that the PUD needs to provide incentives for its customers to switch over to more efficient electric power from the less environmentally friendly wood heat.

Taking over PSE's local operations would have benefited from a slower process, according to Commissioner Wayne King.

"If I had to do this all over again, I'd drag my feet," he said. "The people that we thought were with us are working against us."

"There's no point in rearguing the wisdom of buying the utility," Collins responded. "Like any mortgage, we are taking on a certain amount of debt that will take 20 or 30 years to pay off."

The next regular meeting is scheduled for 5 p.m., Tuesday, Dec. 13 at the PUD administrative office, 230 Chimacum Road.