EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) — The City of El Paso’s intervention in El Paso Electric’s proposed rate increase will take an important step starting this week.
An administrative law judge will conduct a hearing about the rate case, starting on Thursday, Aug. 7. The hearing, which will be held virtually, is scheduled to last until Aug. 15.
It will include testimony and cross-examination from El Paso Electric, the City and other intervenors.
The Public Utility Commission of Texas received El Paso Electric’s request for a rate increase back in January and referred the case to an an administrative law judge to conduct a hearing and issue a proposal for a decision, the City said.
EPE is seeking a $93 million increase to its annual revenues, the City said.
The City said that is driven largely by $1.55 billion in infrastructure investments from January 2021 to September 2024 and a proposed 10.7% profit.
If approved as proposed, most customer classes would see higher bills, with different impacts depending on usage patterns, the City said.
Previously, the City said the rate increase would translate to $22.39 per month for the average residential customer.
Following City Council’s June 24 unanimous vote to deny the proposed increase, the City has actively continued to:
- Engage in extensive discovery and legal analysis
- Prepare and file rebuttal and cross-rebuttal expert testimony related to key components of EPE’s request
- Advocate for lowering the company’s proposed return on equity (profit), changing how costs are distributed among customer classes, and scrutinizing major project expenses such as the Newman Unit 6 power plant
“This week’s hearing is a critical step in ensuring that any changes to electric rates are fair, transparent, and backed by solid evidence,” City Attorney Karla Nieman said. “We remain committed to protecting El Paso ratepayers and holding utilities accountable.”
After the hearing concludes, the parties will file post-hearing briefs, and the administrative law judge will issue a proposal for decision in the coming months. The Public Utility Commission, which has the final say on the outcome of the case, is expected to make a final decision by January 2026.
Moving forward with the hearing will provide the parties additional information which may help in considering potential settlement negotiations in the rate case, the City said.
The City’s intervention in utility rate cases has historically provided residents and businesses over $189 million in rate relief, the City said.
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