BLUEBONNET ELECTRIC LOWERS RATE
Bluebonnet Electric Cooperative has announced it has lowered the fuel portion of its electric rate.
Officials say they lowered the rate by a half-cent, beginning with bills mailed Nov. 1.
This is the second time in two months and the third time in 2015 that Bluebonnet has reduced the fuel portion of its rate, called the power cost recovery factor.
A half-cent reduction equates to a $5 savings for every 1,000 kilowatt hours of electricity consumed. The average Bluebonnet residential member consumes about 1,200 kilowatt hours of electricity per month.
With the three half-cent reductions in the fuel portion of the co-op’s electric rate since February, officials say the average Bluebonnet residential member will pay about $18 less per month than at the beginning of 2015.
Great news for all of our rural neighbors in our county. Three times this year Bluebonnet has lowered the electric bill! How many times has the city of Brenham done the same? Is it safe to assume none? Profits from utilities are used to support many city expenses, including payroll, with all the benefits. And we now have 3 assistants to our city manager! No secret there is a hiring freeze right now with Bluebell utility profits at a halt. But you can bet that once they are up and running, the freeze will be over. Utilities are a vital necessity, not a luxury. Utility revenue collected that is over and above the costs of power ( or gas) should be used ONLY for all utility workers salaries, etc, all utility maintenance and infrastructure, building maintenance, etc. any profits over and above should be returned to customers. All other non utility expenses can be covered with property tax and sales tax revenue. If those taxes don’t cover, then cut the fat.
While I agree that the City probably has many places where it could reduce its budget, please keep in mind that the City is not an electric coop like Bluebonnet. The customers of Brenham utilities are not “members” of a City coop like the customers of Bluebonnet are. It’s a completely different animal. Owning its own utilities is a huge advantage the City of Brenham has over other small cities. Excess income can be used outside of the utility department, obviously after covering any necessary expenses within the department.