July’s Pepco bills have arrived, leaving some area residents with sticker shock and others simply frustrated. Hot days and the 150 percent energy tax increase that went into effect July 1 are to blame.
For the first time ever, Kentlands resident Susan Brann’s bill topped $300, which “is just ridiculous for a townhouse,” she said. “I was really surprised by my last Pepco bill but didn’t know that the energy tax was at least partially to blame.”
Immediately, Brann turned the thermostat up a few degrees, and she and her family been uncomfortable at night ever since.Â
What was ironic to Brann is that the July bill was the first one received after replacing her 15-year-old appliances with energy efficient ones. “I expected the Energy Star fridge and more energy efficient dishwasher to have helped lower our bill at least a bit,” she said.
Kentlands resident Diane Strodel called her bill “outrageous.”
“I keep it at 78 degrees most of the time, and that doesn’t seem to help,” she said. “Then, of course we lost power. The house was 85 degrees on the top floor after a few hours. Crazy. Not happy.”
Lakelands resident Stephanie Gallagher said she was prepared for the worst but thought her bill was better than it could have been. “In the winter, when I got the shock of my life with my gas bill I signed up for alternative sources for both Pepco and Washington Gas,” she said.
The tax was largely supported by County Executive Isiah “Ike” Leggett (D) who believes the energy bill is in the hands of the residents and how much energy they choose to use.
“We don’t like the increase any more than anyone else,” said Leggett’s spokesman, Patrick Lacefield, in a statement. “Barring an increase in the tax, however, county government would have been required to make even deeper reductions in county services.”
The energy tax was part of a budget plan that sought to make up for a $1 billion budget gap by making cuts to jobs and services and raising taxes. Residents now are charged
1.3 cents per kilowatt-hour of electricity use and 11.5 cents per therm of natural gas, according to Pepco spokesman David Morehead. Before the energy tax, residents were charged less than half in electricity and only 4 cents per therm of natural gas.
According to Morehead, an average Montgomery County household was possibly looking at a $20 – $30 raise in July’s bill over the same period in 2009. Even in June, residents were under a temporary (and heftier increase) energy tax that saw bills jump more than 300 percent from May to June, according to county officials.
Not everyone is buying the justification for the hike. Lakelands resident Pamela Balla believes Montgomery County is not being fiscally responsible. “If they are taking in less revenue, the budget deficits should be taken care of by reducing services and the replacement and upgrade of county equipment, i.e. police have better computers in their cars then I have at home,” she said. “County residents are forced to live within their means; the county should live within their budgets well. Our county officials are elected to make hard choices, which should be reflected within their budget.”
Kentlands resident Susan Moore also noticed a difference in her Pepco bill but said there is not much of a choice. “Either pay it or be without,” she said. “It, like everything else, is going up. Corporate greed rules.”
As August temperatures soar, Brann is dreading her August bill. “I know I’m not looking forward to the next one, which will cover the main period of 100+ degree days,” she said.