SMUD Continues It’s Lemming Drive
Published April 7, 2009I swear to God, it wasn’t five damn days ago that I posted SMUD Shocks the Shit out of its Customers and today I get their monthly ‘Home Electricity Report’.
For those unfamiliar with that unsolicited report, it compares my electrical consumption with my efficient neighbors and all my neighbors. I usually consume way more than both of them. Well, yea. I’m home all day. Plus, I don’t own this sugar shack so I can’t exactly install energy efficient windows, and a new heating/cooling unit. However, I do have their shade tree planted in my front yard, the one that’s lifting up my drive way with its roots.
I need to interject something. Several years ago the color of the house I live in was a very light tan with dark brown trim. The usual tract home. The owner spent several weekends repainting the exterior a blinding white to “keep the house cool”. I thought he was going to come back and at least paint the trim some other color, but that never happened. I now live in the white house. I kid you not, I can’t even go outside to take the trash cans to the curb without putting on sun glasses.
Now if you read my last report, SMUD wants to raise rates 13% to make up for the slump in electrical usage due to the economic downturn. My rant, in part, was about the constant scouraging we get to decrease electrical consumption. Turn off the lights. Lower the heater. Raise the air conditioner. Caulk your holes. But apparently, decrease in bill = increase in rates. Beats me, man, you do the math.
So in the monthly report I just got, I have received a “good” rating for the month, but here’s the oxymoronic get-out-the-Vaseline-I-promise-this-won’t-hurt kicker. They enclosed a rather large 3″ x 3″ orange magnet that says “I’m proud to have an energy efficient home”. It was attached to a flyer that says, “Take pride in your results: By taking action to reduce home electricity use, you and your neighbors have saved yourselves over $500,000 so far!”
If SMUD gets its way with that rate increase, they will be able to recoup that 1/2 million dollars along with the money they spent on those dumbass magnets.
That’s right, customers. Keep conserving electricity. Lead the lemmings off the cliff. Fuckers.
SMUD, you SUCK! I’m getting out the shovel and you’re going 6′ under…after I caulk your holes. mmmaaaawwwwaaaaa!
7 Responses to SMUD Continues It’s Lemming Drive
I wondered myself about this no growth = no revenue = rate increase. The largest component of the rate increase is that we installed a shitload, thousands upon thousands, of residential housing connections before the crash and now having spent all that money…can’t charge a customer who isn’t connected.
The timing seems bad, but I think that this is going to have a stabilizing effect for rates for years to come because in the future we’ll have all these connections paid for as well as being able to charge for their connections.
I’m a SMUD guy…I know that there are a number of other reasons for this rate increase. A very strong reason is for SMUD to keep their credit rating high so that borrowing costs are low. We borrow for every new piece of equipment we install. If our credit rating drops, we’ll pay more for capital improvements…and you’ll pay more, too. You are connected to a grid with bulk transformers whose average age is 36 years…there’s going to be a crushing volume of infrastructure improvements needed in the next 15 years to keep up with this aging hardware. Yep. Expect more increases.
Then, don’t even bother to ask how much more SMUD is paying Blue Cross and/or Kaiser to insure their employees. Yep. Expect more increases.
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Thats absolutely ridiculous! I never heard about SMUD, but i gaurantee i too would be annoyed with the information they supplied.
I definitely feel bad for your white house with brown trim lol. make sure you keep a quality pair of shades available.
That’s frustrating. You’re saving electricity, and they reward you by increasing your rates. At least you have an awesome magnet, now (joking).
I just got a $220 bill. Apparently SMUD charges 3 tiers in summer and if you use over 700kWh they rape you on their charges. Plugging things into an electricity calculator there is NO WAY to use under 700 kWh in a typical 3 bedroom apartment/home with several people living there.
@Sterling, I think you and I got the same frickin’ bill. Mine was $209 with those same 3 tiers for a 3bd house. Unbelievable.
what? there are just some ppl who live to create drama!!