CenterPoint customers will receive a credit on bills beginning October 1
LITTLE ROCK – The Arkansas Public Service Commission has granted Attorney General Leslie Rutledge’s request for a $10.4 million credit for the customers of CenterPoint Energy Resources Corp. d/b/a CenterPoint Energy Arkansas Gas (CenterPoint) due to excessive charges by the Company. CenterPoint provides utility service to ratepayers in Arkansas, and its rates are set under a formula rate plan subject to a 4-percent annual limit. This is the second consecutive year that CenterPoint has been required to provide credits to customers due to excessive charges under the Company’s formula rate plan.
“CenterPoint must credit money to customers after excessive charges were collected under the formula rate plan,” said Attorney General Rutledge. “These credits will be a welcomed change for CenterPoint customers including our most vulnerable citizens, especially in light of the challenges facing Arkansans due to COVID-19 and devastating winter storms.”
Attorney General Rutledge’s Consumer Utility Rate Advocacy Division (CURAD) opposed the excessive charges collected through CenterPoint’s formula rate plan and advocated for the return of this money to customers. Beginning on October 1, 2021, customers will see a credit on their bills. An average residential customer should expect approximately $1.81 in credit per month depending upon usage.
CURAD represents the interests of Arkansas’s utility customers in front of the Public Service Commission and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. CURAD litigates on behalf of Arkansas ratepayers when utilities petition the Public Service Commission for rate increases, seek approval for sales or mergers, request permission to purchase or construct power and when the Commission initiates cases to establish customer service rules and other policies that affect ratepayers. To report any consumer-related issues to CURAD, contact the Arkansas Attorney General’s office at [email protected] or visit ArkansasAG.gov.