Understanding Your Electric Bill
The two tariffs applicable to reading your Residential SDG&E bill are the
Domestic Residential Tariff and Electric Energy Commodity Charge.
The first part of the bill is composed of the Residential Tariff noted above.
Total Usage: This amount, listed in kilowatt hours (kWh), shows how much electricity your meter registered for the billing cycle. A rough average of a single family San Diego home is about 624 kWh per month, according to information from the California Energy Commission.
Baseline Allowance: This allowance is the threshold amount of energy that is billed at a lower rate than the non-baseline amount. Oftentimes, a residential user will have 249 kWh as a baseline allowance. Any electricity consumption above this threshold will be billed at a higher, non-baseline rate per kWh. The Baseline Allowance is supposed to meet 50 to 60% of your home's electricity consumption. The Baseline Allowance is determined by four things: The climate zone in which the account is located, whether the home is all-electric or uses both Natural Gas and electricity (see page two), number of days in the billing cycle, and whether it is summer or winter.
You may be eligible for an increased baseline allowance if you or someone in your home uses a medical device that runs on electricity. For m information about the Medical Baseline Allowance.
Baseline Usage: If your total usage is greater than the baseline allowance, your baseline usage will be the baseline allowance; any remainder will be your non-baseline usage. If your total usage is less than the baseline allowance, your baseline usage will be your total usage and you will have no residual usage billed at the higher, non-baseline rate.
If total usage > baseline usage, then baseline usage = baseline allowance
If total usage < baseline allowance, then baseline usage = total usage
In this example, the baseline usage is 249 kWh and the non-baseline usage is 500 - 249 or 251 kWh
The overall rate that you pay for the baseline usage is listed on your bill. For instance, your bill may look like this:
Baseline Usage 249 kWh @ $.06326
This indicates how much you were paying per kilowatt hour (about 6.3¢) for your baseline allowance. This rate is determined from the line items below the Total Electric Charges, such as Transmission, Distribution, etc. to determine the Baseline Usage Rate per kWh. In this instance, the total charges for Baseline Usage are $15.75.
Non-Baseline Usage: If your total usage is greater than the baseline allowance, any additional amount is considered to be your Non-Baseline Usage. This is billed at a higher rate than the Baseline Usage. Your bill may look something like this:
Non-Baseline Usage 251 kWh @ $.08781
This indicates how much you were paying per kilowatt hour (about 8.8¢) for your non-baseline usage. This rate is also determined from the line items below the Total Electric Charges, such as Transmission, Distribution, etc. The slight difference between the Baseline and Non-Baseline charges is due to an increase in the Distribution and Transmission charges for Non-Baseline kilowatt-hours. In this instance, the total charges for Non-Baseline Usage are $22.04.
So, the total bill is calculated as $15.75 + $22.04, or $37.79, plus the actual cost of electricity, which is listed as the Electric Energy Charge minus the Electric Energy Rate Adjustment. If you take the Energy Charge, subtract the Rate Adjustment and then divide this by your total kWh, you should find that you are being charged $.065 (6.5¢) for the market price, which is the current capped rate for SDG&E customers. This price is an average of the market value of electricity that the State's Dept. of Water Resources is currently purchasing on behalf of consumers for your billing cycle. Yes, this is a big chunk of change. In fact, if you meet certain low-income guidelines, you can qualify for the California Alternate Rates for Electricity, or CARE Program.
Line Item Components
Electric Energy: This is the actual price you are charged for electricity. In California, the price of electricity used to be wholly determined by supply and demand, but given the upheaval in the electricity market that has been experienced for the last year, the State's Dept. of Water Resources has locked in long term contracts. The average rate of those contracts has been hovering just above our capped rate for the last month and is shown on your bill. The price for electricity fluctuates on a day-by-day and hour-by-hour market structure. The price you are charged on your bill is the average price for which electricity was selling over the duration of your billing cycle.
SDG&E and all other private California utilities must buy the electricity for all of their customers from the Dept. of Water Resources. If you are a typical residential customer, this price for electricity is then averaged over the number of days in your billing cycle. SDG&E makes these average rates available. For which ever week you want to view, the current residential rate is listed near the bottom of all the different kinds of accounts and is listed as "Residential--Secondary--Total" for 29 to 35 days (5 weeks) in the billing cycle. Or you can count the eighth line up from the bottom. Electric Energy Rate Adjustment: This credit comes about because of the legislated rate cap implemented in September, 2000. Now that the commodity price of electricity is capped at 6.5¢, the rate adjustment credits back the difference between the market price listed under the Electric Energy Charge and the capped rate for the total amount of kWh on your bill. For those customers who are with alternative providers (ESPs), you will not see this rate adjustment on your billl. How do you make sure the adjustment was properly calculated? Take the market price from your bill and subtract $.065. Take this difference and multiply if by your kWh. This rate adjustment is what is being incurred in the balancing account that will be have to be repaid in the not-too-distant future. Transmission: This is the cost to bring high-voltage electricity from power plants to distribution points near to you and includes the cost of high-voltage power lines and towers, as well as monitoring equipment. SDG&E is the company that paid for the construction of the transmission grid back when it was the local, regulated utility. No other companies were allowed to generate their own electricity and build their own grid, since that would be redundant. Now that SDG&E is no longer in the business of generating power, it receives revenue by charging for transmitting electric energy from the power plant to consumers over its grid. Transmission charge = Total Usage X $.00688 / kWh Distribution: This charge is the cost to deliver electricity through power lines strung on utility poles, across transformers, to where you use it. This charge also includes repair crews and emergency services. Basically, this charge reflects any extensions from the transmission grid to your home and the maintenance of keeping you connected to the grid. Distribution charge = (Baseline usage x $.03940 / kWh) + (Nonbaseline usage x $.05154 / kWh) Public Purpose Programs: This cost provides for state-mandated assistance programs for low-income customers and energy-efficiency efforts. Public Purpose Programs = Total usage x $.00352 / kWh Nuclear Decommissioning: Nuclear power was once the wave of the future for power generation. In hindsight, however, the risks and costs associated with producing electricity in this fashion far outweigh the benefits of this form of "cheap" energy. SDG&E previously invested in nuclear power and subsequently bills this charge to recover the additional costs and stranded assets associated with nuclear power. Nuclear Decommissioning = Total usage x $.00065 Trust Transfer Amount (TTA): This is a bond repayment charge, the same bond that was recently paid off 2.5 years early by SDG&E and from which customers will be receiving a refund. At the time, SDG&E purchased $650 million in bonds, of which they only subsequently needed $260 million. Therefore, the additional $390 million is being returned to the people who paid for it, averaging $260 for most customers. However, all SDG&E customers will be paying off the interest from this bond. Competition Transition Charge (CTC): When California had only regulated, monopolies as utility providers, utilities made investments in what was then new forms of power production and long-term power contracts. Those costs have always been recovered in the electric rates charged to consumers and by the revenue created from the contracts. So, in essence, this charge has always been on your bill. Now, however, in California’s deregulated utility industry, private utilities like SDG&E recover their assets that are "stranded" in these investments through the CTC charge, and thus can remain competitive in the new market. This charge will be phased out in four years. Competition Transition charge = (Baseline usage x $.00204 / kWh) + (Nonbaseline x .01445 / kWh) The amounts of each line item above, when added up, should equal the Total Electric Charge amount shown under your baseline and non-baseline usages. So, you should get the exact same total in two places, which assures consumers that they are being billed appropriately (or confuses the heck out of them).
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Electric Bill
I read about Residential Tariff and Electric Energy Commodity Chargelast week , when i was in some canal boat holidays...interesting
You think your bill is bad...
My wife, daughter and I moved into a new-to-us house in August last year. We were a little worried when we first moved in because it is a 100% electric home... But our Aug-Nov bills were just a little higher than when we lived in a condo (~$75 at the condo and now ~$90). We bought a new low-e washer and dryer, put in low-e fluorescent light fixtures and were already in the habit of turning off lights when we weren't in the room. But then December came and it got cold... Our daughter is under 2 years old and we did the same thing we had done the previous winter... We broke out the space heater. We would set the temperature to 70 degrees and heat our daughter's room. We also put a heater in our bedroom but set it to 65... Needless to say, we saw a sudden hike in our bill. It jumped to about $200. Scared of outrageous bills we stopped using our heater and converted to an electric blanket. Our next bill was $270. We then found a leak in our hot water pipe and although we hadn't seen an increase in our water bill we thought it could be the culprit so one afternoon I fixed the leak and our next bill (Feb) was ~$90. Now we were a little confused, but there were some warm days leading into that bill so we thought great! We've fixed our problem. But then March we got a bill for ~$380! What the hell?!?!?! I called SDG&E and was told that our Feb bill had been estimated because the meter reader couldn't (or didn't) actually read the meter. [On a side note, we saw her come up and read the meter that month and there is NO REASON why they wouldn't be able to read the meter. It has been in the same location for about 70 years, there is no fence blocking it, no dogs to deal with, no vegetation in front of it...] So SDGE did their duty and re-calculated our bill so that our 100% eclectic home base line allowances would be reflected over both months. Great! It saved us about $4.00! Now, we have used the heat less, fixed the leaking hot water pipe, don't use a heater at all in the master bedroom, have been bbq outside (therefore not using the electric stove as much), keep the lights off unless we're in the room, make our loads of laundry bigger, take shorter showers, still mostly use low-e lights, and yet our bill was $375! WTF?
I feel your pain, we felt we
I feel your pain, we felt we were doing so good....front loader washer/dryer that is supposed to save water and electricity, new windows/doors, insulation, new exterior (Nu-cote) to reduce heat/cold penetration and loss, new energy star/efficient appliances, tankless water heater, less water used in house, lights turned off, etc. You name it we try it. We still have the same bills in this house with all this as we did in a rental house that leaked, had horrible windows, heat, A/C unit, and was the most inefficient house located in Lakeside. What is that about SDG&E? WE are going solar-Thanks U-can for so much information to make this happen!!
reply
A 6 percent adjustment in electric energy costs for all customers effective February 2008 and a 6 percent adjustment for all customers effective February 2009
I really don't understand
I really don't understand this... I believe it cames too much for my house... i'm paying 100 dollars per month for an apartment ?! I don't think it's normal.
being charged for previous tenants bills
within the last three months at least as many people ,(one being my son), have told me that upon moving to a new house or apt. ,when they've gone to get their power turned on, they are told that because the previous tenant left a high balance, the new tenant cannot get THEIR electric on. my son and one of the other people have never had an apt. before. How can they do that???
Jump in bill, too!
The highest bill last winter in my 1700sf house was $250. This year, I rec'd a bill for $450! My co-worker, same sf, just rec'd a bill for $500+. Someone needs to investigate SDG&E.
SDG&E Outrageous Bill Jump
Two months ago (Oct-Nov) I was paying approximately $40 for SDG&E: same house, same appliances, no fancy technology/gadgets/toys, same single person who works full time and is not home much on the weekends.
My last electric bill jumped 71%. The month before that it was about $75 higher than usual but I thought it was just two combined bills. This past month it was over $170 more than usual or than it has ever been, in any circumstance, anywhere I have lived.
I do not have heat, I have a fridge, microwave, two TV’s (only one ever watched at a time), a space heater (only in one room). I am very conservative and I have the new green conservation light bulbs everywhere. It's just me in the house ever. I called SDG&E regarding the huge bills and got that same "we don't make mistakes" attitude. The rep even asked me if I was SURE I was the only one living in the house.
I went on the SDG&E website and did all their tests to see where I should rank in energy usage, given all my circumstances. By SDG&E's own standards regarding this last cost acceleration, only one or two households filled with people would rank higher than my usage, as alleged by the last bill. Thus by their own standards, these increases are not possible in my household, yet I cannot get any kind of relieve/repeal/appeal, and the bills will just keep coming that way unless I shut off the electricity.
My gas bill, in complete contrast, comes to about $20. Seems like common sense that anyone only using $20 worth of gas would not additionally be using $160 or so worth of electric.
How can my bill go up over $170 more than three months ago? What could possibly cause a real rise in costs such as that?
Reading all these other similar cases online here, it appears that SDG&E is just charging arbitrary and huge amounts that are not allowed to be disputed or changed. Where is our governmental protection of this utility practice? How can we have no recourse?
What is going on at SDG & E????
We purchased a condo conversion in Nov of 06. Every month our usage has gone up.. We are not doing anything different and have all " Energy Star" appliances as well as light bulbs. We used less electricity in the winter than in the summer per SDG&E.. WHAT?? We don't have an air conditioner and lights come on later than they do in the summer. It should be less. I call SDG & E and they are rude and don't offer any help. I have left several messages for a manager to call me and still hear nothing. I can't even check the meter to see if they are estimating because the closet is locked and per our HOA only SDG& E has the key and SDG& E says the HOA does.. .. Something fishy is going on and I want to know what we can do about this.. If anyone knows please let me know..
Thanks and good luck
SDG&E FLUORESCENT LIGHT REPLACEMENT SCAM
WE HAD ALL THE LIGHT FIXTURES REPLACED WITH "EFFICIENT" FLUORECENT FIXTURES IN OUR BUSINESS AS PART OF A SDGE SUPPORTED PLAN.
OUR BILL WENT UP SINCE THEN?
WE HAVE SKY LIGHTS IN OUR BUILDING, AND MOST DAYS DO NOT USE THE LIGHTS?
IS THIS A SCAM THEY ARE PULLING?
MIKE
My SDGE bill stresses me out
My SDGE bill stresses me out every month. I have a house with no air conditioning; I heat it with a woodstove. I have no pool, no major electricity sucking device. All my appliances are low energy. All my lights are fluorescent. But my bill is always around $550 a month. What are other people paying? Is this normal? I looked at purchasing a new house in Scripps Ranch (Stonebridge), and they told me that the average bill there was $250 a month. With air conditioning, central heat AND a pool. I've asked SDGE on numerous occasions to help with an energy audit, but they don't do that for residential customers... What else can I do?
Baseline Allowance
I have recently added a central heating system to my
house. The baseline rate, if I remember correctly was established some time
ago, and of course it did not include the usage of electricity by a heating
system. Now my SDG&E bills are considerably higher and I wonder if there is
a process by which ones baseline rate can be recomputed and re-established?
Baseline Allowance
If you previously used gas and have switched to electric heat you do qualify for an additional baseline allocation for the winter months. You will need to contact SDG&E customer service, 1-800-411-SDGE (7343) to inform them of the change in your heating method. http://www.sdge.com/forms/baseline.pdf
Electrical Baseline Amount Changes
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Being that an electrical baseline amount is supposed to cover 40 to 60% of the usage during the period.
What happens when your baseline was calculated in 1985 on a home with no air conditioning, no fans, no computers, no washer, no dryer, etc; and is "artificially low".
Over time as you add a computer, an air conditioner, new refrigerator, new TVs, and a host of other electrical appliances with "phantom" power useage...your baseline just barely covers the amount of electricity with all lights off!
Is there a method to have Baseline recalculated in cases such as these with SDGE?
Regards,
Mark Pugh
Non-baseline amount charges
This is something that we have pondered over for several years (since the crazy shortage years with $1200/mo electric bills). This is what I don't understand... why is it that they can charge us so much extra for going over if the baseline usage is intentionaly meant not to meet our need? And why can they charge us up to three times for some of our usage 100-130%, 130 - 200%, 200-300%? Lastly, why is it that I pay one rate for 24 days of the month and another for 5 days of the month, shouldn't they all be the same? We are a family of four in an area of southern California that routinely reaches extreme low and highs in temperature seasonally, myself and my husband both work full time so our house is EMPTY 8-10hrs a day five days a week! We do have a few luxury items... fish tank, extra TV's, rechargable toys...but we routinely go up to 300% over our baseline usage. We have changed out every lightbulb in our house to fluorescent (makes everything ugly) and spent the extra money for new "low energy" appliances and none of it seems to make a bit of difference! I feel like I'm getting ripped off every month for something I can't change. I did inquire before and was told the baseline usage amounts were set back in 1980, before electric phones, home computers, microwave ovens, VCR/DVD's and non-free TV reception! The other thing I was told was that it was the same for one person in a 1 bedroom appt as a family of 4 in a 3 bedroom house, how can that be!!!!
perplexed by electric bills
how are all those charges calculated?
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