{"id":808,"date":"2019-10-02T06:55:44","date_gmt":"2019-10-02T11:55:44","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.georgiagassavings.com\/blog\/?p=808"},"modified":"2021-06-29T15:44:09","modified_gmt":"2021-06-29T20:44:09","slug":"georgia-psc-challenges-agl-rate-increases","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.georgiagassavings.com\/blog\/georgia-psc-challenges-agl-rate-increases\/","title":{"rendered":"Georgia PSC Challenges AGL Rate Increases"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"The
The Georgia PSC has come out against AGL’s proposed natural gas rate hike. Learn how it could affect your monthly natural gas bill and what you can do to keep your rates low.<\/em><\/center><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Georgia PSC Says AGL Should Lower Charges, Not Raise Them<\/span><\/h2>\n

As we reported earlier this year, Atlanta Gas Light wants to <\/span>increase rates on natural gas consumers in Georgia<\/span><\/a>. When AGL presented its request to the Georgia Public Services Commission, it hit back with total disagreement. Rather than approving a rates rise, the PSC thinks AGL rates should <\/span>decrease<\/span><\/i>. Negotiations are still at a relatively early stage, so it\u2019s not yet certain how things will play out. One thing\u2019s for sure, though; now is a great time to <\/span>lock in a cheap natural gas rate<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

What’s the\u00a0Atlanta Gas Light Rate Increase For?<\/span><\/h3>\n

AGL is looking to increase its charges by about $50 per household per year. In a <\/span>3-day public hearing<\/span> AGL laid out the reasons why it needs to charge higher rates. Consumers aren\u2019t exactly thrilled about paying higher natural gas bills<\/a>, but if the money\u2019s being spent on essential infrastructure and safety it\u2019s an easier pill to swallow.\u00a0 However, according to testimony filed with the PSC,\u00a0PSC staffers disagree<\/a> with AGL\u2019s proposal on a number of important points. For example, they contend that AGL intends to finance employee bonuses with this money, something the PSC believes \u201cshould be borne by shareholders, not customers\u201d.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The PSC also alleges that AGL\u2019s current position doesn\u2019t just reflect the unavoidable consequences of being a major natural gas distributor. PSC Staffers argue that AGL failed cutting costs in 2016. \u00a0when Atlanta-based Southern Company bought out its parent company. Essentially, the PSC says that AGL really isn\u2019t providing value for money, and shouldn\u2019t expect customers to pay more as a consequence.<\/span><\/p>\n

PSC Recommendations for AGL\u00a0Pass Through Charges<\/span><\/h3>\n

Rather than rates increasing by $96 million, the PSC thinks rates should drop by $42 million. Obviously, AGL representatives didn\u2019t think much of this suggestion, one of whom said it <\/span>\u201cwasn\u2019t unusual for the PSC staff to stake out an extreme position\u201d<\/span><\/a> such as this one. The implication is that they believe the PSC is getting ready to haggle, hoping to barter AGL down from $96 million to something a little cheaper. They may be right. In any case, it isn\u2019t clear precisely what the outcome will be. Further discussions will take place on October 23, when both parties will seek to make their voices heard.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

What Should Customers Do About AGL Rates?<\/span><\/h3>\n

If AGL increases its base charges, which it\u2019s likely to do to some extent, then your natural gas bill delivery charges will go up. You can protect yourself from cost increases by locking in a cheap natural gas rate as soon as possible. Start by shopping and\u00a0<\/span>comparing natural gas plans in Georgia<\/span><\/a> to find the best deal in your area. You can even stay up to date with the best rates wherever you are by downloading the Georgia Gas Savings app for iOS and Android. Switch and save directly from your smartphone in just a few minutes! Download the app here: <\/span>https:\/\/www.georgiagassavings.com\/apps\/ga<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Georgia PSC Says AGL Should Lower Charges, Not Raise Them As we […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mbp_gutenberg_autopost":false},"categories":[168,153,161,103,160,169,212,152,1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.georgiagassavings.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/808"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.georgiagassavings.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.georgiagassavings.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.georgiagassavings.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/8"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.georgiagassavings.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=808"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/www.georgiagassavings.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/808\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1491,"href":"https:\/\/www.georgiagassavings.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/808\/revisions\/1491"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.georgiagassavings.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=808"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.georgiagassavings.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=808"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.georgiagassavings.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=808"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}