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Law & Lawyers

Electric Bills in West, Midwest, East Virtually Constant for Years

At around $3.50 daily, electric bills are less than telephone bills on average

Today we continue to mine the mother lode, the 2015 Consumer Expenditure Survey released last week by the Labor Department, on what consumers spend on everything, including electric and natural gas service.

As we wrote yesterday, at four bucks a day, electric service averages 2.61 percent of Americans’ consumer expenditures. It’s a considerably lower percentage if expenditures made on behalf of consumers are counted, by government, insurance, etc.

The regional differences are dramatic.

Byline: 

Steve Mitnick

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October's CPI: Electricity Still Lags Overall Cost of Living

As usual, the CPI for electric utility service lagged the overall CPI over the last 12 months.

Late last week, the Labor Department published October’s Consumer Price Index. The underlying detail shows consumer price trends for electric and natural gas utility service nationally and regionally.

Nationally, the overall CPI for all goods and services was up 1.6 percent over the last twelve months. 

As is usual these days, the CPI for electric service lagged the overall CPI. CPI-Electricity was up 0.4 percent over the twelve months. 

Byline: 

Steve Mitnick

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October Electric Bills Below 1.4% of Consumer Expenditures

Less than a seventieth of consumer expenditures is now needed to pay for electricity, in the second of the most affordable periods in history.

The Commerce Department has published detailed consumer expenditure data since 1959, as part of the estimation of the Gross Domestic Product. It published last week the numbers for October of this year.

For just the twenty-fifth month, out of six hundred and ninety-four months since 1959, electric bills fell below 1.4 percent of consumer expenditures.

From January 1959 through October 1999, electric bills had never fallen below 1.4 percent. November 1999 was the first time.

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When Water Meets Energy

Each essential. Each dependent on the other.

Water depends on energy and energy depends on water, creating opportunities for synergies and efficiencies.
Byline: 

Susan N. Story

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Electric Rates Losing Ground to the CPI

December CPI up 0.7 percent, while electric rates down 1.2 percent

The Labor Department reported last week the Consumer Price Index, the CPI, for December 2015. 

The CPI for all goods and services increased 0.7 percent during the twelve months through December. That's a low rate of inflation. The CPI for electricity specifically decreased 1.2 percent during the same twelve months. That's a medium rate of deflation.

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How They Thought About Electricity

Three books from the thirties and forties remind us about how precious was the arrival of electricity

Engineering and Invention, 1934

You will see that this house everywhere is generously supplied with these outlets.  They give life to a variety of electric devices, and make it possible for them to be used wherever and whenever they are needed.  They are the source of much pleasure and convenience.

But today, with the electricity cut off, they might as well not exist...

If we listen to the talk of the people we shall hear them say over and over again: "Never did we realize before that electricity played such an important part in our lives."  

Byline: 

Steve Mitnick

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Bernie, Hillary Debate Climate Change Plans

In March 6th Democratic debate, the candidates clashed over climate change plans.

Continuing from yesterday's column. You might find of interest this excerpt of the March 6th Democratic debate.

The presidential candidates finished their food fight over fracking. Then they clashed over climate change plans: 

CNN's Anderson Cooper: Senator Sanders ... there are a number of Democratic governors in many states who say that fracking can be done safely. And that it's helping their economies. Are they wrong?  

Byline: 

Steve Mitnick

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Even More on New Consumer Survey on Electric Bills

Friday’s data release from Labor Dept.: what are similar expenses to electric bills for the average household?

This week's columns have analyzed the brand new Labor Department data on how much American households spent on everything during the year ending June 2015, including electricity.

The semi-annual Consumer Expenditure Survey is the source for understanding Americans' electric bills by region, income, age, urban/rural, etc. The government actually asks many thousands of households each quarter to track every single purchase. The credibility and detail, especially through mining the micro-data, is unequalled. 

Byline: 

Steve Mitnick

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Your June Issue is Must-Read

Flaherty, Fama, Hyman, Kirsch, Morey, Jensen, Hemphill, Patterson, Reiter, and also Orson Welles and Pete Townshend.

Tom Flaherty, top expert on utility mergers, on the dramatic consolidation that’s taken place and still coming. In your June issue of Public Utilities Fortnightly. Must-read.

Jim Fama, industry leader on cybersecurity. His thoughts on his last day as Edison Electric Institute vice president for transmission and distribution, with a very active retirement ahead. Also in the June issue, also must-read. 

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Residential Sales Sag

2016 could place in fifth or sixth or seventh place. Behind 2010, 2011, 2014, 2015 for sure, possibly 2013, 2007 as well.

In the first quarter of 2016, electricity sales to residential customers were 346.8 million megawatt-hours. This was well below sales in the first quarter of 2015. And well below sales in first quarter of 2014.

Q1 2016 sales were 8.3 percent below sales in Q1 2015. And they were 10.9 percent below sales in Q1 2014. 

Sales in March, the last month of the quarter, were particularly low. They were 14.4 percent below March 2015. And 12.4 percent below March 2014.

Byline: 

Steve Mitnick

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