Measuring average electricity bills for October of 2014, a survey conducted by the Southern California Public Power Authority found huge discrepancies between public and private sector providers, especially as the amount of energy consumed increased.
Private companies charged nearly twice as much, on average, for 2,000 kWh per month, charging just over $620 compared to only $351 for public utilities.
Given that the average American family consumes just over 900 kWh per hour, the 1000 kWh averages may be the most relevant. Private companies charged just over $275 in October for 1,000 kWh, while their public counterparts charged only $163.
As the amount of energy consumed decreases, so too does the gap between public and private providers. At 500 kWh private utilities charge $102, while public companies charge a few pennies more than $75. And at 200 kWh per hour, both private and public utilities charged just over $30 dollars, with private utilities charging about $2 extra dollars ($32.32 vs $30.29).
Private utilities must operate under different rules than public utilities and lack many of the benefits, such as priority access to the cheap electricity generated at Federal dams, cheap public financing. This helps to explain the discrepency in costs.
This isn’t to say that public utilities are perfect. A recent audit found that Los Angeles tax payers were overcharged by at least $40 million dollars due to inflated managerial salaries and wasteful personal spending accounts. Last December, a city employee in Pasedena was found guilty of embezzeling $6.4 million dollars from energy customers.
