LEAC Reduction Blocked as WAPA Files Petition Against PSC Decision

WAPA’s petition opposing the PSC’s June LEAC rate cut has halted its July 1 rollout, with the utility arguing that a $2.5 million monthly revenue loss would endanger its financial stability and public service capacity.

Despite the Public Services Commission mandating a reduction in the Levelized Energy Adjustment Clause (LEAC) earlier this month, consumers will not see lower electricity bills come July 1, lawmakers learned on Thursday.

“WAPA filed a petition for reconsideration,” PSC attorney Boyd Sphren told members of the Senate Committee on Budget, Appropriations and Finance. The petition, he said, suspends the PSC-ordered rate reduction until the dispute is resolved.

The PSC has been pushing for a LEAC reduction for months, citing WAPA's boasts about reducing their cost of power generation due to the addition of LPG-fired generators and solar farms to the mix. Until June, however, WAPA had been allowed to continue collecting the 22.22 cents per kilowatt hour in order to address their backlog of debt.

During the PSC's last meeting, commissioners decided that consumers had been waiting for rate relief for long enough, and ordered that the electricity LEAC be lowered to 17 cents per kilowatt hour. The recommendation from the PSC's consultants had been to set the LEAC at 15.39 cents/KWH, however commissioners chose the higher rate to allow WAPA to recoup at least some additional funds with which to pay down outstanding obligations.