Portland Mayor criticizes PGE's planned tariff increase

Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler speaks out against another planned price increase by Portland General Electric.

In an open letter published Thursday, Wheeler wrote: “This proposal places an undue burden on Portland residents, particularly the most vulnerable populations. In addition, it imposes significant additional costs on the City of Portland – at a time when city services are already being negatively impacted by budget cuts.”

In the letter, Wheeler says Portland General Electric has requested a 10.9% increase to take effect in 2025. This follows an 18% increase in January that also took effect. This would bring PGE's residential rates up more than 40% since 2021.

“I'm a retiree and I have to spend the whole summer catching up. And even though they set me up on a payment plan, it's still hard to catch up,” one viewer told KATU about the proposal.

A spokesperson for PGE told KATU that they actually reduced the rate from 10.9% to 6.3%. “PGE is committed to providing customers with the energy they need while keeping the grid safe, reliable and resilient as we work together to meet society's electrification needs and the sustainable energy priorities shared by our customers and communities. Meeting these needs while prioritizing affordability and improving energy access and reliability is critical,” the spokesperson said.

“With the recent net reductions of $18 million from PGE's originally submitted rate application, the proposed reduced base rate adjustment for 2025 is 6.3%. There is an annual regulatory cost reimbursement process for the purchased electricity required to serve our customers, which is currently at 3.1%. This number is updated quarterly and may increase or decrease before being finalized at the end of each year,” they continued.

There is currently no final figure for the interest rate. The hearing is expected to take place on November 14.