Austinist: Austin Energy Cutting Residents a Discount

Ellen

Wed, 20 Dec 2006 14:14:46 -0600

Maybe they can take some of that surplus and reduce the $200 deposit for new services to a reasonable amount. Or they can be more progressive with their policies towards low income, elderly and disabled folks: not cutting off their utilities when they can prove they don't have the income to pay it. Austin Energy is WAY behind the rest of nation when it comes to looking out for our most vulnerable populations.

Rob

Wed, 20 Dec 2006 13:06:24 -0600

I'm in the Power Partner program and love the programmable thermostat. However, they cycled my AC a lot more than 9 times this summer. It was almost every weekday during August from 4pm-8pm, 20 minutes on, 20 minutes off. My place didn't finally cool down to 80 degrees until after midnight on those nights. I recommend not going home after work and hitting Barton Springs at night if you join.

M1EK

Wed, 20 Dec 2006 12:29:45 -0600

More exciting news for the long-run is that they're beginning a pilot of BPL (broadband over power lines) which will enable time-of-use billing - a much bigger incentive for spreading out power demand to better match the supply.