The Kansas Corporation Commission has approved a settlement agreement that will reduce rates for customers of Black Hills Energy.
Customers will see a credit on their monthly bills as based on federal and state tax reforms. The so-called Tax Adjustment Rider will refund over $9 million to customers over a three-year period and translates to a better than 5-percent reduction of base rates for individual ratepayers.
The KCC says the settlement will also let Black Hills keep using the Gas System Reliability Surcharge and fund pipeline replacement efforts across the utility’s system, although the customer charge for the Reliability Surcharge — separate from the Tax Adjustment Rider — will increase from $16.94 to $18.50 a month.
The KCC order comes from a Black Hills application in May to adjust its rates. It does not address the extreme natural gas costs related to the brutal cold last February.
Black Hills serves 117,000 customers in 50 Kansas counties, including Lyon and Osage in the KVOE listening area.
