NASHVILLE – Tennessee’s largest seniors group, AARP, said today the Tennessee Regulatory Authority’s ruling in a Chattanooga Gas Co. rate case ultimately places a “burden” on consumers by requiring they pay for an energy conservation program.
AARP Tennessee Director Rebecca Kelly said that, while the group backs regulators’ decision this week to slash Chattanooga Gas’ proposed rate hike, TRA directors’ approval of a “decoupling” provision warrants close scrutiny in the future.
Regulatory directors agreed to let Chattanooga Gas embark on a three-year experiment to charge consumers a set fee to recover more of the company’s fixed-service costs. Fixed costs currently are recovered through charges on the amount of gas a customer consumes. The change is known as decoupling.
“In the short term, the TRA acted wisely to reduce this rate hike,” Ms. Kelly said in a news release. “But the decision to decouple rates from the amount of natural gas used will place a burden on consumers.”
She also urged the TRA not to approve any requests by other natural gas companies to implement decoupling until the three-year experiment involving Chattanooga Gas and decoupling runs its course.