Did you notice that your April bill from Southern California Edison was lower than you expected? Reporter Dan Stork was surprised to see his low bill, and looked into why…
My household electricity bill from So Cal Edison for April showed a $40 “Climate Credit.” Yours should too. Here’s what it’s about: In 2006, the California legislature enacted AB 32, the Global Warming Solutions Act. It’s California’s version of “cap-and-trade”, in which industries like fossil-fuel driven power plants either reduce their greenhouse emissions, or pay for the right to pollute. The state redirects the money two ways: The state uses some in programs that fight climate change, and gives some to many California business and residential electric customers, to partially offset the rate increases expected from the transition to renewable sources of energy by energy providers. The amount of the credit differs by the provider, but each residential customer of a given provider, such as Edison, gets the same amount. Residential customers will get their credit in April and October, through at least 2020. The amount of the credit may change over that time. Small business owners—defined by electricity usage that tends below 20 kw per month—will see a rate reduction on every month’s bill. For more information about the Climate Credit program, see energyupgradeca.org.
