The head of the Starkville Electric Department is urging customers to look at its new rate system as an opportunity to control their energy use.
Terry Kemp appeared before the Starkville Board of Aldermen on Tuesday to clarify the department”s move to seasonal use rates. TVA has mandated all of its distributors make the move to one of several similar rate systems, all of which are designed to better reflect the true cost of electricity being paid by TVA and none of which are designed to make TVA or the electric department more money.
“The process is more geared toward changing the structure of rates. It”s not made to generate additional revenue,” Kemp said Wednesday. “A rate change is a change in the structure. A rate adjustment is the process used to increase revenue.”
The seasonal rate structure is built around the common knowledge that energy usage, most commonly heating and cooling, rises during the hottest and coldest times of the year and drops during moderate weather. Kemp said TVA is changing its rate structure to intuitively follow those trends, rather than charge one flat rate for a kilowatt hour of electricity all year. Power bills will be higher than usual during peak use months and lower than usual during low use months, all of which should result in customers paying roughly the same amount for this year”s power as last year”s.
“Don”t look at it on a month-to-month basis. Look at it on a yearly basis,” Kemp suggested.
He also urges customers to use the “transitional periods,” or the months between hot and cold seasons, as an opportunity to shore up any energy leaks. The Starkville Electric Department offers an in-home energy evaluation for $150, performed at your home by a certified auditor. If energy-saving recommendations are followed within 90 days, they could lead to $500 worth of cash incentives as well as a rebate on the $150 evaluation fee. Plus, the improvements will save customers money over the life of their homes.
Several examples of eligible improvements include: energy efficient windows, attic insulation, air sealing and duct work on heating and cooling systems.
The implementation of the new rate structure coincides with the first transitional period of April and May. June, July, August and September comprise the hot period. Then October and November transition to the cold months of December, January, February and March.
Kemp is hoping that customers will address energy inefficiencies in their homes after seeing a more accurate reflection of the cost of power.
“We”re sending signals that this is where the price is. Hopefully, coupled with energy efficiency, we can clip those peaks. And hopefully TVA will be less stressed to yield capacity, which would take a relief off all of our rates,” he said.
Jason Browne was previously a reporter for The Dispatch.
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