Kauaʻi residents may face higher electricity bills in the new year.
The Kauaʻi Island Utility Cooperative has asked the state's Public Utilities Commission to approve a rate increase.
KICU is a member-owned energy company governed by a board of directors and serves as the main provider of electricity for the Garden Isle.
The co-op said in an announcement on Wednesday that inflation has outpaced electricity sales, necessitating a rate hike.
The average residential consumer using 500 kilowatt hours per month would see about a $19 increase in their monthly bills, if the request is approved.
The nearly 900-page rate case application outlines how this would be the second rate increase in the electric utility's 20-year history. The change would go into effect in the second half of 2023 at the earliest.
“There’s never a good time to increase rates,” said KIUC’s President and Chief Executive Officer, David Bissell in a statement on Wednesday.
“However, since our last base rate increase in 2010, growth in electricity sales has lagged far behind inflation, so an adjustment is necessary.”
For more information on the rate proposal, click here.
