Electricity rates soar in California

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (CBS, KYMA/KECY) - If there's one thing predictable about California's electricity bills, it's that they are pricey.

"I don't know what my electricity bill will be month to month," said Justina Rucks, a California resident.

The California Legislative Analyst Office (LAO) confirmed this in a report that says electricity rates in the Golden State are increasing at a faster rate than inflation.

The driving factors: Wildfire reduction related costs, ambitious greenhouse gas reduction programs and inconsistency in prices across utilities.

"Do any of these findings come as a surprise to you? It's not surprising," said James Bushnell, Professor of Economics at University of California (UC) Davis.

Bushnell says as more people go solar, it leaves utility companies charging their customers more, so the utility can upkeep the infrastructure such as transformers and wires.

"When you collect that money for the infrastructure through a monthly fixed charge, that allows the utility to lower the price of the electricity itself," Bushnell remarked.

SMUD already has a monthly fixed charge of about $24. PG&E is implementing around the same amount a month for most customers starting in 2026.

"We got to have limits on increases, limits on overspending and limits on corporate profits so that every day customers can get some relief," said Mark Toney, Executive Director of The Utility Reform Network (TURN).

TURN, a utility companies watchdog, thinks there needs to be caps on non-fixed increases for investor owned utilities like PG&E. 

The utility giant raised rates for customers six times in 2024, but PG&E said its residential electric bills are about 4% lower than they were this time last year.

But at the end of the day, most Californians are just looking for ways to efficiently electrify their homes without breaking the bank.

"All we care about is: 'Can I turn the lights on?' 'Is my refrigerator working?' 'Can I open the garage to get in and out to go to work everyday?' 'Am I paying astronomical prices for that?'" asked Art Asuncion, a SMUD customer.