The 1.5 million Oregon households who receive electric service through Pacific Power or Portland General Electric will pay more this year.
The state’s Public Utility Commission — a three-person governor-appointed group charged with regulating the rates of privately owned electric and gas utilities in Oregon — approved both monopoly electric utilities’ requests to raise rates on residential customers at a meeting Tuesday.
PGE rates will increase by 5%, a roughly $8 per month increase for the average customer, while Pacific Power’s 4% increase equates to more than $5 per month, according to the commission. Representatives for Pacific Power said in an email that most residential customers will see a 3% increase while customers in Albany will see the full 4% increase due to a city-wide street remodeling project…