Energy Affordability- Problems and Solutions

Energy Affordability- Problems and Solutions

Brittany Baker Maryland Director, Chesapeake Climate Action Network

There is so much information to help us understand the high energy cost issue. Please read it.

HoCo Presentation CCANDownload

Some dive-in on the bill in the slide.

Below is a clear, regulator-accurate breakdown of which parts of your Washington Gas bill are avoidable vs. unavoidable, and what actions (if any) actually reduce each charge.

1. UNAVOIDABLE CHARGES

You pay these no matter what supplier you choose and even if gas prices fall.

🟥 Distribution Charge ($15.98)

  • Pays for pipes, meters, maintenance, emergency response
  • Set by Maryland PSC
  • Cannot be avoided
  • Reduced only by using less gas

🟥 STRIDE Surcharge (~$1.90)

  • Funds pipeline replacement & safety upgrades
  • Automatically approved cost recovery
  • Unavoidable
  • Continues even if you switch suppliers

🟥 System Charge ($11.85)

  • Covers system-wide reliability & balancing
  • Infrastructure-based
  • Unavoidable

🟥 EmPower MD Surcharge ($1.80)

  • State-mandated energy efficiency programs
  • Required by law
  • Unavoidable

🟥 Taxes ($2.99 total)

  • Montgomery County energy tax
  • MD Gross Receipts tax
  • Unavoidable

🔴 Bottom line (Unavoidable)

~$34–36 of your $47.98 bill is unavoidable

No supplier switch, negotiation, or timing can remove these.

2. PARTIALLY AVOIDABLE CHARGES

Can be reduced only by using less gas

🟨 All per-therm charges

These scale with usage:

  • Distribution charge
  • STRIDE
  • System charge
  • EmPower MD
  • Taxes

How to reduce them:

  • Insulation
  • Heat pump hybrid systems
  • Lower thermostat setpoints
  • Efficient water heater

⚠️ But note:

Even cutting usage 30% usually lowers the bill only ~15–20%.

3. AVOIDABLE / CHOOSABLE CHARGES

These are the only charges you can change via supplier choice

🟩 Natural Gas Supply (PGC – $13.46)

  • This is the commodity gas price
  • You may:
    • stay with Washington Gas default
    • switch to a retail supplier
  • This is the ONLY line item you can shop for

Reality check:

  • Typical savings from switching: $1–3/month
  • Many third-party suppliers:
    • raise rates after teaser periods
    • add early termination fees
    • lock you into higher fixed prices

📌 Most people save little or nothing long-term.

4. What Is Truly Avoidable?

Charge TypeAvoidable?How
Distribution❌ NoNone
STRIDE❌ NoNone
System charge❌ NoNone
EmPower MD❌ NoNone
Taxes❌ NoNone
Gas supply (PGC)✅ YesSwitch supplier
All charges⚠️ PartiallyUse less gas

5. Hard Truth (Important)

Washington Gas is essentially a fixed-cost utility disguised as a usage bill.

  • 70–75% of your bill is policy + infrastructure
  • Efficiency helps, but only modestly
  • Electrification (heat pumps) is the only real escape, but costly upfront

If you want next:

  • a side-by-side bill before/after heat pump
  • a supplier switch risk table
  • how Maryland PSC approved STRIDE and why bills rose
  • comparison with BGE / Pepco gas customers

Just say the word.