Consumer groups hopeful for CenterPoint rate decrease

HOUSTON – The Houston Chronicle reports that an administrative law judge has denied CenterPoint Energy’s motion to withdraw its pending request to increase rates, a win for consumer advocacy groups and cities that want the Houston-area utility to continue with its application and to possibly see regulators order its rates to decline. CenterPoint filed an application in March to increase its portion of the average residential customer’s monthly electricity bill by $1.25. The company filed a notice to withdraw the request in August after withering criticism over its preparation and response to Hurricane Beryl, which left a record 2.26 million of the utility’s customers without power. When CenterPoint first filed its withdrawal notice, CEO Jason Wells said the company wanted to focus instead on immediately improving its operations during this hurricane season.

Representatives for consumer advocacy groups and municipalities, including the city of Houston, countered that if approved the withdrawal would deny them the chance to “claw back” certain expenditures. The judge’s ruling is final unless it is appealed to the Public Utility Commission of Texas, which has its next open meeting Aug. 29, according to Thomas Brocato, a lawyer representing the Gulf Coast Coalition of Cities. The group is seeking a rate reduction for CenterPoint and is supported by the Texas Consumer Association, the Houston Coalition of Cities and the Texas Coast Utilities Coalition. “For CenterPoint to say we’re withdrawing, it probably made many people feel like it was an act of kindness,” said Sandie Haverlah, president of the Texas Consumer Association. “But when you dig deeper into the details, it’s better for the customers to continue this case so they could see a rate decrease sooner rather than later.” In a statement, CenterPoint spokesperson John Sousa didn’t answer whether the company planned to appeal the decision, only that it was “reviewing the ruling and assessing potential next steps.”