Will Central Hudson rates shoot up?

There will be plenty of opportunity for members of the public to comment on the Central Hudson rate case, in which company executives are seeking an estimated $30 per month from both electricity and gas customers. Ben Wolcott, who is the chief of staff for Sarahana Shrestha, attended the February 28 New Paltz Village Board meeting to bring residents up to date. Village officials have “intervenor” status in the legal proceeding, but it’s the common people whose voices could potentially hold the most sway. Wolcott believes that it’s “always good to show that the public is watching and angry.” 

What’s at stake is specifically the delivery charges for gas and electricity, as Central Hudson is not a generator of power. At present, residents of the entire town — which includes all village residents — have the option to pay a flat rate for electricity, which is negotiated thanks to a system with the ungainly label of “community-choice aggregation.” That scheme does not have anything to do with delivery charges, which are instead approved by the New York State Public Service Commission in Albany through the rate case process. Central Hudson’s parent company Fortis plays no role in this process.

Most rate cases submitted to the public service commission result in negotiated three-year settlements. In this case, the commissioners opted instead to pursue litigation. It’s possible that the attention that’s been on Central Hudson in recent years due to a botched billing transition influenced that decision. Many rate-payers have seen wildly fluctuating bills, and it’s been a topic of interest at all levels of government. Even if that swayed the commissioners toward litigation, it was determined that the billing issues would not be considered as part of that process, which Wolcott called “really frustrating.” 

With those billing complaints being decoupled from the push to increase rates an average of $360 per account, Wolcott said that Shrestha’s staff members “will be pushing for many hearings,” and that intervenors like the village trustees can do that same. The objective is to provide a variety of times and locations for hearings in person, in the belief that testimony received in person is more impactful. 

That comment period won’t be until after the administrative law judges draft a decision, which could be later this month. It’s likely that the entire process will be concluded in June. Wolcott noted that the decision rendered through litigation only applies for a year, which means that it’s expected another rate case application is already being drafted in Fortis offices in Newfoundland and Labrador — where the company is headquartered — or possibly closer to home. 

Central Hudson is headquartered at 284 South Ave. in Poughkeepsie with approximately 1,200 employees, nearly all of whom reside within the Central Hudson service area. This includes our President and CEO who grew up in the City of Poughkeepsie, graduated from Our Lady of Lourdes High School and holds a degree from Marist College.