Settlement lowers electric rates for Delmarva Power customers in Delaware
The Delaware Public Service Commission has approved a settlement in Delmarva Power's regulatory rate review that passes along federal tax savings to customers and funds Delmarva Power's efforts to enhance the local energy grid and maintain safe and reliable service for its customers. The settlement passes along the full amount of the federal Tax Cuts and Jobs Act tax benefits to Delmarva Power's electric customers in Delaware, resulting in an approximate $7 million decrease to electric bills.
"This settlement is good news for our customers and we appreciate the hard work and cooperation of all involved," said Dave Velazquez, president and CEO of Pepco Holdings, which includes Delmarva Power. "Delaware customers will see lower bills and continue to benefit from the important enhancements we are making to the safety and reliability of the local energy grid, which have resulted in record electric reliability for customers and a 35 percent decrease in the number of electric outages over the past five years."
Based on the settlement, reached between the staff of the Delaware Public Service Commission, the Division of the Public Advocate, Delaware Energy Users Group, and Delmarva Power, a typical residential customer, using 840 kilowatt hours of electricity per month, would see a total monthly bill decrease of $1.40 or 1.2 percent. Customers will see a variety of one-time and ongoing credits and refunds on their electric bill that reflect the tax savings, as well as other agreements from the settlement. New rates are going into effect within 30 days of the settlement's approval by the Public Service Commission.
Delmarva Power initially filed its electric delivery rate request in August 2017 to help recover money spent to maintain and enhance the local energy grid and other costs, such as technology upgrades and operational improvements. Electric delivery rates cover the cost of the poles, wires and other equipment that deliver electricity to customers' homes and businesses, the cost of customer service and the preparation and processing of customer bills. The money spent on these efforts helps the company continue to meet customers' expectations, and has improved efficiency, reliability, and safety for Delmarva Power's customers.
The settlement provides customers the benefits of the federal tax reduction and efficiently resolves the pending request by more than offsetting the adjusted electric delivery rate. The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, signed into law late last year, reduced tax costs for energy delivery companies and created an opportunity for Delmarva Power to lower bills for its customers.
Delmarva Power continues discussions with interested parties regarding the current regulatory rate review for natural gas delivery rates. To learn more, readers are encouraged to visit The Source, Delmarva Power's online newsroom. Find additional information go to www.delmarva.com.
