Clearing up confusion — the cost of electricity

We know that recently, there has been quite a stir about electricity — particularly related to two line items on our Eversource bills.

We have all been dismayed by the jump in charges and some of us were confused by how and why that happened. If you take a look at your bill you will see two distinct line items, FMCC and Comb PB.

FMCC is the Federally Mandated Congestion Charge — the cost of fixing an overburdened grid. This past year, it was used to subsidize the Millstone Nuclear Power Station to ensure its capacity to meet demand. The Millstone plant is located in Waterford, Connecticut, and is the source(s) for approximately half the electricity used in the state. The FMCC was the second highest driver of the increase in bills over the last 10 months.

Comb PB is the Combined Public Benefit line item includes three charges:

—System Benefits (SB) includes funds for money saving conservation programs, guarantees powerthrough the cold winter months and low income discount rates for electricity — a huge help for our vulnerable neighbors.

—Conservation Load Management (CLM) includes money-saving energy efficiency programs and demand response to reduce the likelihood of power outages.

—Renewable Energy Investment (REI) funds the CT Green Bank which attracts $7 of private sector investment for every $1 of public seed money.

Collectively, these represent the smallest component in our bill increases.According to the ConnecticutDepartment of Energy and Environmental Protection website, the FMCC and Comb PB surcharges are scheduled to end as early as April 30, 2025.

As a reminder, these categories account for tens of thousands of jobs, hundreds of businesses and organizations impacted in a positive way.Most importantly, these programs, along with electric rates, are determined and overseen by the legislative and executive branches of our state government, not by Eversource.

The real causes of the spike in our bill last summer were twofold:

1. The rate change set by the Public Utilities Regulatory Authority (PURA)

2.The rise in consumption caused by the heat and humidity in July and August.

Some customers actually doubled their consumption of energy for air conditioning to offset the record high temperatures. Importantly, neither of these additional costs were caused by Eversource.

If the Comb PB charges are removed from our electric bill, they may be added to our tax bills and show up either in income or sales taxes. If they are added to the Connecticut state budget which has a cap, the costs for many other types of public services now funded by the state would be at risk of reduction.

We hope this sheds light on the reasons for the current rate increases and the fact that the surcharges will end soon. Stay tuned for more information and insights!

For more information, a webinar presented by People’s Action for Clean Energy(PACE) is well worth watching and may help everyone understand what happened last year and why. Find it here: www.youtube.com/@pacepeoplesactionforcleane6695

Jane Strong is a member of the Sharon Energy and Environment Commission.