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By Brendan Miller

Council directs city staff to explore rebate options for utility bills

Jun 20, 2023 | 4:27 PM

MEDICINE HAT, AB – At a time when the city’s utility is recording record profits, councillors say they are hearing constant concerns around the cost of electricity.

This year the City of Medicine Hat is forecasting profits from its energy commodity will surpass $162.1 million, or $88.7 million over what was in the budget.

However, councillors Darren Hirsch and Andy McGrogan and others are hearing from residents about the rising costs they see on their utility bills.

At its June 19 meeting, council passed a motion tabled by Hirsch asking the city to look into one-off rebate options and other solutions that could provide residents relief on their bills.

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“I wanted to acknowledge via the form of the motion tonight that we, I guess council, are listening to some of the challenges people are facing and a little bit of anxiety that’s new for taxpayers or ratepayers to consider variable and fixed and all the interactions of that and ramifications around those decisions,” explains Hirsch.

“What we can maybe do to mitigate that on a one-off basis is something that I wanted to move forward,” adds Hirsch.

He wants to provide residents with more clarity on how the market affects utility rates and why they aren’t seeing a direct impact from the profits on their bills.

Council also recognizes the benefit of allowing residents to choose their own rate packages but acknowledges it can be confusing to some residents.

Hirsch would like to see the city provide more education around the three different rate options that include default (RRO), variable and fixed.

“I think it’s incumbent upon this municipality to be able to educate our ratepayers as to what decisions and maybe what educational resources are out there to make an informed decision,” says Hirsch

The city says this week they will be working on the motion and are expected to provide an update by the end of the week.