Power Rebates Recommended
The City of Medicine Hat administration is recommending power rebates for September, October and November to homeowners and small and medium size businesses that are on city utilities in the franchise area. The proposal is for homeowners to receive $200/month and small and medium size business to receive $500/month for the next 3 months. The proposal is for a total of $25 million to be rebated to ratepayers. The power utility is forecasted to earn more than $60 million more than originally budgeted.
MEDICINE HAT, AB - The City of Medicine Hat administration is recommending power rebates for September, October and November to homeowners and small and medium size businesses that are on city utilities in the franchise area.
The proposal is for homeowners to receive $200/month and small and medium size business to receive $500/month for the next 3 months. The proposal is for a total of $25 million to be rebated to ratepayers. The power utility is forecasted to earn more than $60 million more than originally budgeted.
There is also a recommendation to waive disconnect fees, NSF fees and late fees from July to September and credits applied if those fees were already billed. These rebate recommendations are in addition to the Fair Entry Program approved by council in July.
Sources inside city hall have told the Sentinel that council is looking at alternative options such as a larger rebate, a longer rebate period and a long-term rebate policy that deals with power utility profitability rebates and profits being set in reserve to be reinvested into the community so that this issue does not come back to council over and over again.
The struggle on the issue within council has been around the fact that Medicine Hat taxpayers own the utility. If the utility makes profits it directly benefits Medicine Hat residents and property tax payers. There has been a concern around rebating profits to those utility customers that don't pay property taxes in Medicine Hat specifically when they also use infrastructure in which the power profits help pay the cost.
With the recent report on recreation and the costing of those potential projects being large, it could be said the excess power profits are now in the bank to pay for these new facilities. Residents in the surrounding area do benefit from these facilities and should they get a rebate when they do not pay property taxes towards building and operating the many facilities they benefit from and utilize.
This issue will be brought before council on Tuesday September 5th and there will be a group of ratepayers gathering in front of city prior to the meeting to rally support for this rebate.
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