Base Rate Application in Texas

As a means to address our region’s continuous growth, El Paso Electric (EPE) has invested nearly $1 billion into its infrastructure, as well as its generation, transmission, and distribution systems. As required by the Public Utility Regulatory Act and the Public Utility Commission of Texas (PUC) Rules, we’ve filed a rate case application to ensure that we can continue providing the reliable service you expect.

A rate case is the regulatory process that all public utilities must follow to formally change their rates. In Texas, both the City
of El Paso City Council and the PUC oversee rate changes, and any proposed changes must first go through a review process before receiving a final decision by regulators.

In our 2021 filing, we’ve asked the PUC to consider all investments implemented across our service region in recent years.
If approved, here’s what that means for you:

• An increase of 13.36%, or $11.76, for an average Texas residential customer utilizing 686 kilowatt hours (kWh) monthly.
• A reduction to the minimum bill for all non-grandfathered distributed generation (DG) residential and small commercial customers, from the current $30 to $24.02 and $25.19 respectively.
• The elimination of the minimum bill for DG customers who have elected the demand charge time of day rate.
• A return of approximately $2.5 million in excess deferred taxes to customers over the next four years.
• A new plan to support the deployment of electric vehicle (EV) charging stations to ensure our region is ready for the transition to EVs.

This particular process can take anywhere from six months to a year to reach a final approved decision. The next step in the process will be for the PUC to assign an Administrative Law Judge and establish a procedural schedule. For the record, our last rate review was on December 18, 2017.

To follow the Rate Case Application process filed with the Public Utility Commission of Texas, click here.

To read the notice sent to customers,   click here. 

For more information on the Rate Case Application in Texas, click here.