Appalachian Power seeks 20 percent rate increase for our area...

[cynatnite]

Scroll almost halfway down for the video report.

http://www.timesnews.net/article.php?id=9005704

Between food, gas, insurance and everything else that has gotten more expensive, we're now looking at a rise in the cost of electricity. Meanwhile, wages stay the same. We've got a kid graduating high school this year. How is anyone supposed to make it...let alone get ahead. :shrug:

[Breeze54]

1. Is there a Citizen Advocacy group that can fight them on this?

That's pretty scary! 20%? Yikes!

If I lived there, I'd be picketing the State House!

[leftofcool]

3. We tried this in our state

BG&E raised our rates by 70%. Nothing helped, they got their way.

[Kolesar]

2. replace your lights and appliances with energy efficient models

Put all of your electronics and "wall transformers" on "power strips" so you can turn them off when you are not using them. Standby losses for ten devices can waste several dollars a week.

[Breeze54]

4. I want a window solar power device...I saw a plan

to build one and it's supposed to power one room all day, including
a TV, computer and a lamp and a space heater! I'm going to try to build one.

[Kolesar]

9. Well, no, actually

[Breeze54]

10. No what? I didn't ask you a question.

:shrug:

[Kolesar]

11. you would need a hundred square feet or more of photovoltaics to get a kilowatt

A window sized unit would barely give you enough juice to heat a soldering iron. If you want heat, open the shades.

[Breeze54]

13. Not according to the engineer who built one.

I posted how to build it in the Live Frugally forum.

[rateyes]

5. Upper East Tennessee?

That's where I was born and raised. And, I hear you about the rate increase. Greedy bastards.

[cynatnite]

6. They mentioned Kingsport specifically...

which made me wonder if it's going to even apply to folks outside of the county. I would think not, but I don't know.

[rateyes]

12. You from Kingsport?

That's my hometown. Actually I lived in Sullivan County, but close to Gray.

[cynatnite]

14. We've lived here since 2001...

The place is growing. It's changed a lot just in the short time we've lived here.

[rateyes]

15. Eastman Kodak take you there?

If that place ever closes, Kingsport will dry up and blow away. Beautiful area of the country, though...especially around Bays Mountain and the foothills of the Smokies. Love the fall colors there.

[cynatnite]

16. It's still here, but I doubt Kingsport would dry up...

if it went away. There is much more here now. It'd hurt the city, but Kingsport is a lot more than Eastman now than it used to be.

[rateyes]

17. Yeah, I was there two weeks ago. But, if Eastman closed the doors

a lot of people would have to move out, and there would go a big chunk of the service industries.

[ThomWV]

7. I believe that next the the Pacific nothwest you already have the second lowest rates in the country

Doesn't all of your power come from TVA hydroelectric dams and their extensive grid of nuclear plants, all Government built and their operation subsidized? The last time I looked, which I have to admit was a couple of years ago, the national average price for residential power was around 7.5 cents per kW and you all were getting your for something a little below 6 cents. Either way, most of our power comes from burning coal and being an economic substitute for other non-renewables as they go up in cost so does it. Power production cost are spread across very stable labor costs, essentially fixed capital equipment cost, and one big variable, fuel. $100 oil raises the price of natural gas and coal too. You are seeing the effect.

[cynatnite]

8. Nope, we get most of ours from coal

I don't know how we stack up compared to the rest of the country, but I know we were a little lower than what we were paying in Idaho. That was an entirely different climate so differences in prices are expected.

Our sales tax alone is 9.5% and add that to an already rising food bill, it gets expensive to feed the family. That's not counting rising costs of insurance, and other crap we're expected to pay for as well.

I understand how costs can rise. I'm not just pissed that they're rising. I'm also pissed that our income remains the same.