LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — Like many NV Energy customers, Las Vegas senior Ann Marie Cittadino has seen her power bill recently increase.
“From the last year, it went up 20 percent,” Cittadino said.
Cittadino is on a fixed income and relies on social security. She said the energy price hike has forced her to cut costs in other areas.
But now, her energy may cost even more. On Monday, the Public Utilities Commission of Nevada approved two orders around NV Energy’s Natural Disaster Protection Plan.
One was for $373 million for programs and prevention efforts from 2024 to 2026. The other costs $37 million for disaster-related expenses in 2022.
Beginning this October, the latter will mostly be recovered through a uniform rate statewide. This comes despite more than 80 percent of those expenses being from northern Nevada.
However, NV Energy said Southern Nevadans did see benefits of the Natural Disaster protection plan, especially in recent months with the utility company’s response to the York Fire and Tropical Storm Hilary.
“I don’t think it’s fair to put [the majority of the cost] on the people who live down here,” Cittadino said.
In a statement, NV Energy spokesperson Meghin Delaney said:
“The Natural Disaster Protection Plan work is critical to protect our communities and our company’s infrastructure in the face of extreme weather events and natural disasters, and the approved projects and programs will continue to build upon the work that has already been done. “
This plan was enacted as part of Senate Bill 239, passed during the 2019 legislative session. It required electric utility companies to submit disaster protection plans to the PUC every third year.
The recent approval from PUC allows NV Energy to continue setting a statewide rate for natural disaster prevention costs.
This recent order could increase the Natural Disaster Prevention Plan rate average from about $2.50 to $5 a month.
“Stop hiking the bills,” Cittadino said. “Stop going after the little people that aren’t making that much.”
NV Energy said it is “still reviewing the details of the asset recovering filing to fully understand the directives of the Commission and the next steps.”
