New York City – Consolidated Edison electric rates are set to increase by 6.1 percent, after state regulators ruled yesterday that they had no choice but to approve a rate hike, despite the recession.
Typical customers will see their bills increase by about $6 a month.
The Public Service Commission says more than half of the $721 million increase will be used to pay for Con Ed’s higher property taxes and assessments that go toward energy conservation initiatives.
The commission also ordered Con Ed to take cost-cutting measures, including the preparation of an austerity budget. Con Ed said it was disappointed by the decision and will look for savings wherever it makes sense.
Customers say they have little choice but to pay the higher fees.
“We need the utilities and we need food and we need transportation,” said New Yorker. “Everything is going up, and it’s just a very bad hardship on us.”
“We have no real choice in it, so it’s just kind of one of those blows you have to take, because I mean, like you said, we need electricity,” said another.
The PSC approved a nearly five percent Con Ed rate hike in March of last year.
(Source: NY1)
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6 Responses
Yes, we Do need electicity, BUT we CAN use LESS! If you must(?) have a TV, at least try to watch less and turn it off when you leave the room. Teach your family members (and yourself) to turn off lights when you leave a room. Turn off computers overnight or when you leave the house. Unplug “extra” refrigerators that you might need for yomim tovim but don’t really need all year round. Unplug chargers (for cell phones, laptops, etc.)after the item is charged. Leave a few key lights on in your house (for security reasons) when you go out, but DON”T leave ALL of them on! Coming into hot weather now so set your A/C on a timer to go on 15 minutes or so before you come home. DON’T leave it on the whole day, or to be on for hours before you get home. Bottom line, a little thought can save some significant $$$ on your ConEd bill!!!
In other news, the recent 50% rate hike by the utility company serving Amishtown met with no complaints.
AynOdMilvado1 (NO 1):
TERRIFIC IDEA!
Here are some more: Sell your home, and live in a tent; sell your car, and get a bicycle; move to Florida to save on heating energy costs.
We are all being squeezed by lower income and higher costs–No TARP funds for us–where will it all end?
To #3 – Where will it all end? It will end with bee’at HaMashiach!
ainOd Milvado:
turn your TV off and leave it that way, cause if the first think thing that comes to your mind when u hear the word electicity- is TV, then your really need help, r”l
To #5 “must-hock”: If the first thing you think of when you hear (or read) someone attempting to give advice is to be choshayd b’k’shayreem, then maybe you are the one who needs a good musar sefer to help YOU. If you bothered to read with a little care what I wrote, you would have realized that I was not at all approving of TV. I just have to love people that (think they) are so holy that their first response to anything they see or hear or read, is to look for an angle from which they can criticize. Maybe its the people that feel they “must hock” that might be an even bigger m’akaiv to bee’as haMashiach than the TV watchers.