Austin Energy Holds Public Meeting Tonight on Rate Hikes

Austin Energy

Austin Energy will be hosting the second of a series of four public meetings regarding the proposed 13% rate hike set to take effect next year. In an effort to appeal to public opinion and engender public knowledge of why the rate hikes are occurring and what they are designed to fund, Austin Energy and the City’s Electric Utility Commission (EUC) have laid out a comprehensive Public Review Process.

The plan includes the four scheduled public meetings in September and October and further public reviews in November and December to field public insight and come to an agreement. Austin Energy is hoping to approve and implement the agreed upon rate proposals in early 2012. This will be first review of rates the city has performed in 17 years.

Due to severe budget cuts across the board, the City of Austin introduced a list of 289 proposals that would save money while also avoiding an impact to emergency first responders and preserving jobs. Several austerity measures went into place across the board, which affect library services, general fund departments and Austin Energy.

According to the City of Austin Menu of Potential Budget Reduction 2011-2012, the city is looking to close a $9.8 million dollar gap and the proposals would amount to $34.4 million dollar savings, $12.4 million of which will come from Austin Energy’s budget. However, the document lays out specifically, “this is a menu of options, not recommendations”. Tonight’s meeting will feature five citizen panels organized to address specific concerns about the rate hike including low-income customer programs, environmental issues and energy efficiency.

In effort to quell the broader backlash that many Austinites are sure to voice in the community, Austin Energy has imposed a headline over a photo of the city skyline on their website that reads: “Austin has changed in the 17 years since our last rate review. Our commitment to our customers remains unchanged.”

The public review of proposed rate hikes is set to start at 6pm tonight at the Austin Energy headquarters, located at 721 Barton Springs Road.