On August 11, 2008, Peoples Gas System filed for an increase to its base rates with the Florida Public Service Commission (FPSC), the first such request made by the company in six years. The proposed new rates will reflect the cost of investments the company has made to its natural gas distribution system, including the increased cost of commodities essential to the delivery of natural gas to its customers, and system enhancements to meet new federal requirements.
Rising costs of business
The efforts of the entire Peoples Gas team to run the business as efficiently as possible have enabled the company to avoid adjusting its base rates for six years, but the costs of delivering natural gas to a growing customer base have soared since the company’s base rates were last addressed. If approved by the FPSC, the average bill for a Peoples Gas residential customer would increase by about 10 percent. Since the most recent adjustment to the company’s base rates, commodities essential to the business, including labor, concrete and steel, have increased by 22 percent, 33 percent and 74 percent respectively.
The August 11 filing begins an eight-month process, during which the FPSC considers the request by Peoples Gas. New rates would be effective at the conclusion of the process, estimated in May 2009.
Infrastructure investments benefiting reliability and the environment
Peoples Gas has added approximately 100,000 more customers since its last base rates adjustment in 2002. To reliably serve that additional demand, and to meet new federal requirements, Peoples Gas has invested in the installation or replacement of over 1,500 miles of gas main in the over 200 Florida communities it serves.
The use of natural gas in Florida homes and businesses provides benefit to the environment. An average home’s annual carbon footprint may be reduced by up to 4,000 pounds when installing four high-efficiency natural gas appliances in place of existing electric appliances.
Components of your natural gas bill
In Florida, a natural gas utility’s base rates cover all costs necessary to establish and operate its system. Base rates are adjusted periodically to accurately reflect current operating costs. A natural gas bill also includes fuel charges. The largest segment of a customer’s bill is the fuel charge, which Peoples Gas collects from its customers without any mark-up or profit, to pay fuel suppliers. The fuel charge, which can be adjusted monthly to reflect actual and projected costs, is monitored and approved by the FPSC.
Energy efficiency: in partnership with our customers
Peoples Gas is the state’s largest natural gas distribution company, serving approximately 334,000 customers through a system of over 10,000 miles of gas main. The company has made significant enhancements to its energy efficiency programs, including increased rebates, to help Florida homeowners and businesses purchase and install appliances that use domestically produced natural gas. Rebates include $625 to install natural gas home heating when replacing an electric system, and $525 to install natural gas residential water heating when replacing an electric water heater. Over 200,000 customers have participated in the company’s energy efficiency rebate programs since Peoples Gas introduced them in the early 1980s. For additional information about the Peoples Gas energy efficiency programs, visit the energy efficiency section of this site.
