The Kentucky Public Service Commission has accepted a settlement agreed to by all the parties in a rate increase case filed by Louisville Gas and Electric and Kentucky Utilities.The original plan was to raise LG&E rates by 8.6 percent so the company could recoup the money it's put into improving service and reliability. But groups including Kentucky Industrial Utility Customers, the Kroger Company, the Kentucky School Boards Association and advocates for low-income customers intervened, and a lower rate increase was agreed on by all parties.Here's how the settlement will affect your bill, from a PSC news release: Under the settlement agreement, the average monthly bill for a typical KU residential customer will increase by $5.16 (5.6 percent). A typical LG&E residential electric customer will see the average monthly bill increase by $4.25 (5 percent). The average monthly bill for an LG&E residential natural gas customer will increase by $5.57, a figure that includes a new surcharge for infrastructure improvements but does not take into account any fluctuations in the price of natural gas itself. The settlement also includes an increase in the contribution company stockholders will make to help low-income customers, bringing it to $1 million per year.This rate hike is separate from the already-approved measure to raise rates by about 13 percent by 2016 to pay for environmental upgrades.
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