The Lewis County Public Utility District (PUD) has adopted a biennial budget that will likely increase rates, though the commissioners won't officially adopt the new rate schedule until October.
During a special meeting on Tuesday, Sept. 3, the PUD board of commissioners adopted budgets for 2025 and 2026 that include rate increases of 7.1% in 2025 and 1.25% in 2026. According to budget documents, the additional funds are needed to fund wage and benefit increases and “power hedging,” among other factors.
Community-owned, the PUD provides infrastructure, power and telecommunication services to roughly 35,000 customers in Lewis County and surrounding areas.
“Last winter, we encountered … a pretty extreme event,” said David Plotz, PUD general manager. “We saw how not just precarious the system is, but how much we need to have a reserve for those types of events. So we need to put money back into that reserve to ensure that it’s robust.”
The potential for higher rates, though, comes after the commissioners opted to keep rates steady between 2023 and 2024. Now facing a likely increase, some in attendance Tuesday felt the commissioners should have gradually increased rates over time, rather than a steeper jump in a shorter period.
“I notice you guys didn’t do a rate increase this year, and you were just really proud of that,” said Debbie Aust. “So it almost seems like you’re hitting us with two years of rate increases in one year. Because 7%, that’s a pretty hefty increase when you consider some of the other things that taxpayers have to pay for.”
Aust, a resident of Chehalis, said with other municipalities throughout Lewis County seeking bonds, levies and other funds, the requests “have to stop” sometimes.
“My question is why are we going with the 7.1% and 1.25% and not dividing it up between the two years and doing less of a jump the first year?” asked Commissioner Mike Hadaller.
Doug Streeter, the PUD's chief financial officer, said the staff had considered a variety of proposals before recommending the rate structure.
“As you said, it’s just a recommendation to get to a certain point where we’re adding a little bit back to cash reserves,” Streeter said. “If we wanted to divide it, we could certainly do that. That’s an option.”
In response, Plotz noted that the less the PUD increases rates in 2025, the higher the rates would need to be in 2026.
“So if we took a percent out of 2025 and moved it to 2026, we would need to put two in 2026, because we’re missing that first year of budget increase,” Plotz said.
Lewis County PUD offers a variety of programs to assist customers with their bills including energy audits, rebates, a senior low-income program, a residential budget payment plan and commercial and industrial efficiency programs, among others.
The commissioners plan to further discuss the new rate schedule during a Sept. 17 commissioners meeting, and adopt a plan on Oct. 15. The new rate schedule would take effect on Jan. 1.
