‘Very preliminary’ 2024 Grant PUD budget released
CHERYL SCHWEIZER | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 3 years AGO
The Grant County PUD 2024 budget will be the subject of an October public hearing at the Moses Lake office, pictured. The first version of the 2024 budget has been released.
File photo
Senior Reporter Cheryl Schweizer is a journalist with more than 30 years of experience serving small communities in the Pacific Northwest. She began her post-high-school education at Treasure Valley Community College and enerned her journalism degree at Oregon State University. After working for multiple publications, she has settled down at the Columbia Basin Herald and has been a staple of the newsroom for more than a decade. Schweizer’s dedication to her communities and profession has earned her the nickname “The Baroness of Bylines.” She covers a variety of beats including health, business and various municipalities. | August 21, 2023 6:06 PM
EPHRATA — Grant County PUD customers could see an overall 2.5% rate increase in 2024. The preliminary 2024 budget was released for the first review at the PUD commission meeting Aug. 8.
John Mertlich, senior manager of financial planning and analysis, called it a “very preliminary” review. According to information presented to the commissioners, the Aug. 8 presentation meets a state-mandated requirement.
Commissioners will approve a resolution to file a preliminary budget today, also meeting a state requirement. The budget will be presented for two public hearings in October, and commissioners will approve the final version in November.
Because the first version is based on information available early in the budget process and with more data to come, it may be revised between now and the final version, according to the presentation.
Public hearings on the final version are scheduled for 2 p.m. Oct. 10 at the commission meeting room in Ephrata, 30 C St. SW, with an online hearing at 6 p.m. An audio link also will be available. A third public hearing is scheduled for 6 p.m. Oct. 12 in the auditorium at the PUD’s Moses Lake office, 312 W. Third Ave.
The preliminary version forecasts a 2.5% overall rate increase and an overall rate increase of 2% annually through 2028. While the overall rate increase will average 2%, the actual increase might be different for different customer classes. Typically the rate increase for residential customers is different from the increase for large industrial customers, to use one example.
The initial version forecasts expenditures of $354.9 million in 2024, with $175.2 million in capital expenses.
Retail sales are projected to be about the same or slightly higher than previous forecasts. The impact of inflation is projected to be less significant on labor and operating costs than it has been in 2023, the presentation said. However, supply chain, international food and energy markets could continue to be subject to the impact of inflation, it said.
Net power revenue and fiber optic network sales are projected to be about the same as 2023, according to the presentation.
The preliminary budget projects the PUD will end 2024 with a positive balance, about the same as or slightly higher than 2023.
Cheryl Schweizer may be reached via email at [email protected].
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