Lower Electric Rates to Affect Bills in Hottest Summer Months  

PG&E electric rates will decrease by 9% on July 1—a temporary rate change that will help customers save on their bill during the hottest months of the year.  

In parts of PG&E’s service area that experience extreme summer heat, such as the Central Valley, the rate decrease could provide an even bigger benefit because they tend to use more energy to cool their homes in the hotter summer months.  

Residential customers who receive both energy supply and delivery from PG&E will see about a 9% decrease in electric rates through the summer. Customers who receive their energy supply through a Community Choice Aggregation program will see a decrease of 7% in PG&E’s rates for delivery service.  

"We are always looking for ways we can help make energy service more affordable for customers,” said Vincent Davis, Senior Vice President of Customer Experience. “This is a temporary rate change, but we know it is coming at the right time, especially for customers who live in hotter climates and have higher bills during the summer months.”  

Electric rates will temporarily decrease because in June, the company will finish collecting costs for important work completed in 2020 and 2021.  

The California Public Utilities Commission approved the work in key areas including:  

• Energy supply  
• Wildfire prevention  
• Storm response  

The commission is considering PG&E’s request to collect costs for similar work completed in 2022 and 2023. The commission’s decision in that rate request could result in a rate increase later this year.   

PG&E expects the combined bill impact of the July decrease and a potential increase in coming months to have little effect on customers’ average bills for the rest of 2024.  

PG&E continues to look at dozens of ways to reduce operating costs without affecting safety, reliability or customer service.  

The company is managing more than 150 projects systemwide to reduce costs including materials and labor.  

Examples include:  

• Reducing tree-trimming costs by $500 million in 2022 and 2023 through new efficiencies in contractor oversight and by bundling work to reduce visits to customers’ homes  
• Lowering costs to underground powerlines by $68 million with new construction methods  
• Saving $24 million in new-business connections by improving processes, while improving customer on-time delivery  

PG&E also collaborated with customer advocates on an alternative to commercial insurance, saving customers up to $1.8 billion over four years.  

We will keep our customers informed as we continue to find ways to reduce electric rates.