Full Notification

Dear Saint Paul Municipal Electricity Customer:

As some of you may have heard, the State of Alaska’s Power Cost Equalization (PCE) Program has not been funded for Fiscal Year 2020. The State’s fiscal year began on July 1, 2019. Under the PCE program residential electric customers received a subsidy based on the local cost of power for the first 500 kilowatt-hours used.  This change to the in the PCE program is due to a missed vote by the Alaska Legislature and a reinterpretation of the Alaska Constitution by Governor Dunleavy which caused the PCE endowment fund not to be funded. 

So, what does this mean to you the customer? Beginning with your July electrical bill from the City, you will no longer see the PCE credit on your statement. If you are an AMPY customer, effective July 15, 2019 you will no longer have a credit applied to your AMPY card. The current residential electrical rate is $0.41 per kilowatt-hour. PCE credit that customers received was at the rate of $0.22 per kilowatt-hour.  The PCE credit effectively lower the kilowatt-hour rate to $0.19.  The bottom line is that you will be paying more for your use of electricity. 

The City recommends the following electricity saving tips:

• Wash laundry in cold water
• Air dry your clothes
• Unplug electronics
• Consider changing your light bulbs to LEDs
• Lower your thermostat by a couple degrees
• Turn off lights in rooms that are not occupied
• Reduce use of your microwave
• Turn down the temperature on your electric water heater
• Reduce TV watching times

It is possible that the State legislature may fix this issue, but in the meantime there will be no PCE credits issued until further notice. If this issue is fixed, it is possible that we may receive a credit towards PCE. If this happens the City will adjust customer’s bills accordingly.