Jamie Asbury: IID's commitment to progressive and transparent service
Over the past year, IID's new board and management have set a progressive vision for providing water and power to customers and communities across the region. We appreciate the opportunity to address concerns raised in Vincent Battaglia's recent opinion piece in The Desert Sun and highlight our ongoing initiatives.
Implementation of Time of Use Rates
IID's commitment to enhancing our system and providing customers with choice is exemplified by our Advanced Metering Infrastructure project. This initiative, nearing completion, involves installing a new meter for each of IID’s 160,000 customers and a robust communications network essential for implementing an updated billing system. Once fully deployed, this system will enable us to offer Time-of-Use rates similar to those of other publicly owned utilities. We look forward to engaging with our customers and communities to maximize the savings and energy efficiency that this program provides.
Energy Cost Adjustment Factor
Contrary to misconceptions, the ECA is not a fee or tax but a pass-through of fuel and power costs. Our plan for 2024 minimizes rate impacts, ensuring more affordable bills for customers each month of the year, even as scorching summer temperatures climb in the desert. To enhance transparency, we are working to separate fuel and power costs from the base rate for more transparent billing, reflecting actual costs more clearly.
Support for Renewable Energy
IID remains committed to supporting customer choice and renewable energy adoption. While we limit compensation for solar customers to prevent cost shifting onto non-solar, often low-income ratepayers, we have made significant efforts to support solar installation and streamline application processes. Our goal is to protect vulnerable customers while promoting sustainable energy solutions.
Forward Progress and Customer-Centric Solutions
IID is actively engaged in a comprehensive cost-of-service assessment to guide future decisions, promote investment in renewable resources, and provide more options for customers, fostering a sustainable energy future. We appreciate the opportunity to highlight our ongoing initiatives and reaffirm our commitment to transparency, innovation, and serving our customers with low-cost, high-reliability public power. We invite all stakeholders to join us in shaping a brighter public power future for our communities.
Jamie Asbury is general manager of Imperial Irrigation District. She can be reached at jlasbury@IID.com.
This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: IID's commitment to progressive and transparent service
