Deadline to protest electric rate increase is today
The protest period for Socorro Electric Cooperative’s proposed rate increase ends today (Wednesday, Feb. 23), but as of 4 p.m. on the eve of the deadline only one protest had been received by the New Mexico Public Regulations Commission.
While several people publicly stated or told El Defensor Chieftain that they planned to file protests, Gerald Garner Jr., public information officer for the PRC, said the only protest on record was from Marie Watkins, a San Antonio, N.M., resident.
Twenty-five valid protests from residential customers are required for the matter to be brought before a PRC hearing officer.
Socorro Electric filed its proposal on Feb. 3. Member-owners of the public, non-profit corporation wishing to protest the increase had 20 days to do so.
Co-op officials held a series of informational meetings to explain the rate increase to customers in January. They said that while the overall increase is about 6.9 percent, the increase for residential and small business customers would be closer to 12 percent. Irrigation accounts, which make up a small percentage of uses, would see a rate increase of about 7.4 percent. Rates for large commercial accounts will increase by about 2 percent.
Part of that rate increase for residential customers is tied up in the cost per kilowatt hour. The proposal increases the charge per kWh from 12.04 to 12.50 cents. The bulk of the increase is tied to the system charge, which is currently $9.00 per month. The proposal calls for the system charge to increase to $15.00 per month.
Co-op officials said that the average residential customer — one who uses 500 kWh per month — would see an $8.31 increase in their monthly bill.
Board Meeting Tonight
Socorro Electric’s Board of Trustees will hold its regular meeting today at 5:30 p.m. in the boardroom, 310 Abeyta Ave. in Socorro.
On the agenda are resolutions dealing with loans from the USDA Rural Utilities Service and National Rural Utilities Cooperative Finance Corporation and the refund of patronage capital. The latter has to do with repaying members for approximately $1.7 million in overcharges that took place over the past five years. The board took action last year to have the reimbursements paid through capital credits.
Also up for action is approval of the agenda for a special meeting to be held in District II on March 16. The purpose of the meeting is to decide whether to recall District II Trustee and co-op President Paul Bustamante of Lemitar.
A petition signed by approximately 90 members in the district asks that Bustamante be recalled for breach of fiduciary duty and no confidence.
The co-op’s new general manager, Joseph Herrera, who has been on the job a little more than three weeks, will give his first manager’s report to the board, covering expenditures, delinquent accounts, outages, safety, construction and personnel.
Reports are also to be given by trustees on the statewide association of cooperatives, Tri-State Generation and Transmission, the bylaw committee and annual meeting committee.
Contact T.S. Last