San Antonio City Council approved CPS Energy's request for a 3.85% rate increase and a regulatory asset to help the utility recover fuel costs from Winter Storm Uri.
The vote was split 8-3 to approve the rate increase and 9-2 to approve the additional fuel charge increase.
District 10 Councilman Clayton Perry, District 2 Councilman Jalen McKee-Rodriguez and District 5 Councilwoman Teri Castillo voted against the rate increase. Castillo and McKee-Rodriguez voted no on both.
The changes will go into effect March 1. Between the two, the average CPS residential customer will see an increase of about $5.10 on their monthly bill.
“We thank the San Antonio City Council for their actions today," Rudy Garza, interim president and CEO of the utility, said. "We understand this was a difficult vote and the timing was not ideal, but we appreciate the necessary investment into our community-owned asset."
According to CPS, the base rate increase will support infrastructure resiliency such as power generation and projects to support extreme-weather operations, designing and growing future technology platforms, keeping up with growth in the community and attracting and retaining qualified employees.
“Through this rate increase, we will do the work needed and invest in our infrastructure, our technology and our people to ensure the delivery of essential services to our community," Garza said Thursday.
CPS Energy's Board of Trustees approved the 3.85% base rate increase in a unanimous vote earlier this week.
The city council vote comes after a recent survey by J.D. Power ranked CPS Energy last in its region for residential customer satisfaction, which J.D. Power executives attributed in part to customer frustration over the base rate increase in the wake of Winter Storm Uri.
