Electric Rates
Learn Why Your Rates Have Changed
You may noticed a nominal increase on your bill. Find out more about why the rate change was necessary.
Reducing Hazards
Find out how we reduced tree-related power outages by 60% in some areas.
Modernizing Systems
Learn what we're doing to update the electrical system in your area.
Staying Prepared
We're constantly evolving our storm response plans to avoid outages and restore power quickly.
Putting the ‘Serve’ in Customer Service
Learn about our latest offerings, including a mobile-friendly My Account interface, pay by text option, interactive outage map, and more.
Following a three-year rate freeze, a new electric rate plan for the next three years took effect on January 1, 2016.
Here’s what’s happening:
- We’ve moved certain costs within the bill for greater transparency – this change resulted in increased Power Supply Charges, which have been offset by a reduction in Delivery Charges
- The Power Supply Charge has also increased because of rising fuel costs. This is a pass-through charge that PSEG Long Island does not profit from.
- A new line item has been added to the bill that will return money to you all year.
What does that mean to your electric bill?
The average residential customer, with a usage of 762 kWh per month, experienced a change of 4.6% or $6.44 per month as of the January 2017 billing cycle. The impact will vary for customers that use more or less energy.
Download the Rate Information Guide to learn more.
These Investments Are Paying Off:
- Enhanced Tree Trimming and Vegetation Management Process
In 2016, we trimmed trees along more than 2,600 miles of wires. Tree-related power outages are down 60 percent in areas where the new program has been implemented. - Maintain Reliable Electric Service
Reliability starts with every piece of equipment that carries electricity to your home and business. This year, we inspected, repaired, and replaced equipment in hundreds of locations, island-wide – including strengthening or replacing more than 8,500 poles. - Improve our Storm Response and Storm Preparedness Program
Enhancing the storm response program allowed PSEG Long Island to restore power to the more than 82,000 customers that lost power in a severe summer storm in fewer than three days, all while staying in regular contact with customers and elected officials. - Provide Best-in-Class Customer Service
We’ve worked on enhancing your customer experience with big changes that included a brand new, mobile-friendly My Account, bill payment by text message, enhanced Balanced Billing program for greater stability and a new, interactive and mobile-friendly online outage map.
Frequently Asked Questions
-
Your rate is shown on the back of your bill, in the box labeled Details of Current Energy Charges.
-
PSEG Long Island became the electric service provider to customers on Long Island and in the Rockaways on January 1, 2014. For 2014 and 2015, we maintained a rate freeze on the distribution portion of the bill.
The three-year rate plan for 2016-2018 includes a modest increase that allows us to modernize the electric grid, improve our customer service, improve storm response and preparedness, and enhance tree trimming to help avoid outages.
-
None. The Long Island electric transmission and distribution system is owned by the Long Island Power Authority (LIPA), which does not have stockholders or pay dividends. Revenues are reinvested back into the electric grid for the benefit of all customers. Those customers are, in essence, the sole owners of the LIPA system.
PSEG Long Island operates LIPA’s transmission and distribution system under a 12-year contract and is paid a flat fee for the services rendered.
-
For the average residential customer (usage of 775 kWh per month), the increase will be:
- 2016 – an average of $.65 a month
- 2017 – an average of $3.33 a month
- 2018 – an average of $3.41 a month
-
No. When PSEG Long Island was selected as LIPA’s new service provider, we committed to making significant improvements to the system and to maintaining a three-year rate freeze. Increases in your bill prior to the new rate structure were likely due to Power Supply Charges.
-
Power Supply Charges make up a significant portion of your bill. The biggest portion of Power Supply Charges are for fuel (primarily natural gas) purchased for use at Long Island power plants, which PSEG Long Island does not own.
The Power Supply Charge is a pure pass-through of the actual cost of power.
This chargeis adjusted monthly and has gone up and down from month to month.As we discussed at the top of this page, we’re implementing changes to the Power Supply Charge to help make your bills more stable.
-
Delivery & System Charges help pay for the cost of providing you with electric service. These are fixed costs, unrelated to how much power you use, and include the cost of billing and collections, meters, customer service and electrical equipment, like poles and power lines.
-
LIPA’s Board of Trustees ultimately sets the rates. The current rate plan is for the three-year period from January 1, 2016 through December 31, 2018.
-
No. The role of the Department of Public Service (DPS) was to conduct a thorough review of the Rate Plan, weigh the evidence, and make recommendations so that rates are set at the lowest level consistent with sound fiscal operating practice. The DPS made their recommendations in September 2015.
-
In 2015, PSEG Long Island invested $300 million into the transmission and distribution (T&D) system that serves our customers across Long Island and in the Rockaways. In addition, there will be record infrastructure investment of $2.1 billion over 2016-2018 – which is approximately double the historic level of investment in the electric system. This includes a $730 million storm-hardening program that was 90% funded by a FEMA grant.