Utility Rates
RSSUtility Rates in Alaska is the cost utilities charge for electricity, natural gas, heating fuel, water and sewer service. It covers rate cases before the Regulatory Commission of Alaska, Railbelt and rural electric cooperatives, and municipal water and wastewater systems.
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Numbers are stories in the last 30 days.
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Week of Sep 28
Seward survey respondents favor a local cooperative to run the city's electric utility
Most Seward survey takers want a local co-op to run the city's electric utility. The math hinges on a hydro project Chugach Electric also wants.
by Melinda Communities.News1mo ago3 min read
Regulators fix math errors in AVEC power subsidy, raising credits in most villages
State regulators found math errors in AVEC's rural power credits. The fix raises the credit in 44 of 46 village power systems and lowers it in two.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago3 min readFrom 
Week of Sep 21
Homer Electric design fee for new hookups doubles to $1,000 Tuesday
Want power at your new place on the Kenai? Homer Electric's design fee doubles to $1,000 Tuesday, and three-phase hookups lose $3,000 in help.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read
Aniak's Bush-Tell has drawn more than $12 million in federal support to serve river villages
An Aniak phone company has drawn more than $12 million in federal support to keep calls and internet running in villages along the Kuskokwim and Yukon.
by Melinda Communities.News1mo ago2 min read
Alaska household electricity prices rose 5.6 percent from a year earlier in July, federal data show
Alaska households paid 28.83 cents per kilowatt-hour in July, up 5.6 percent from a year ago and over 10 cents above the national average. The fridge noticed.
by Melinda Communities.News1mo ago1 min read
MEA lays out how rolling outages would work if Southcentral runs short of gas this winter
MEA's plan if the gas runs short: nine groups, 30 to 45 minutes dark apiece, turns every few hours. Step six of six, and the co-op hopes to never get there.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago3 min read
Global refinery disruptions widened fuel margins in 2026, and rural Alaska's barge fuel cost more
Galena's utility paid 29% more per gallon for this year's barge fuel, and St. Paul paid about $7.55. Summer's dip in oil prices came after the fuel was bought.
by Cale Green1mo ago4 min read
Alaska Power Company asks to waive charges for customers cut off by disasters
Alaska Power Company wants to stop charging people to reconnect after a disaster. Its customers pay about twice what Anchorage pays for power.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read
More from Utility Rates
MEA seeks new power supply as its Hilcorp gas contract winds down
MEA is shopping for new power supply before its Hilcorp gas contract ends in 2029, and asking members how they feel about data centers arriving.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read
Nome's utility is five years behind on audits and borrowing costs more
Nome's utility hasn't finished an audit since 2021, and its manager says the delay is probably raising the interest rate on its annual fuel loan.
by Bill AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read
Week of Sep 14
Chugach will charge you less at night, if you actually move your usage
Chugach will sell you cheaper power overnight and pricier power all day long. Sign up and change nothing, and you end up paying a little more.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read
Sitka's sales tax drops a point Oct. 1, the one that funds schools
Sitka's sales tax drops from 6 percent to 5 on Oct. 1 through March. The summer point that comes off is the one dedicated to funding school buildings.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read
Mat-Su power bills climb about $15 a month, with more increases expected
Mat-Su electric bills rose about $14.50 a month this quarter as power costs climbed, and the co-op expects about 5% annual increases for three years.
by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago1 min read
Week of Sep 7
MEA is holding $451,000 in refunds for members it can't find
Matanuska Electric is sitting on more than $451,000 it owes members it can't find — one of them is owed about $15,000. Checking takes a phone call.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min readFrom 
War-driven oil prices are filling Alaska's treasury while straining its households
The same oil price spike is filling Alaska's treasury and straining its households — and Trump's $2 gas promise would take more than the war ending.
by Alaska News2mo ago5 min read
Juneau's proposed Statter Harbor fee would more than triple operators' costs
Juneau wants Statter Harbor's charter operators to pay about $1.8 million a year, more than triple last year — and they say they can't pass it on.
by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago2 min readFrom 
Coming up
Whittier City Council Public Hearing on 2027 Fee Schedule
Hearing
Anchorage Assembly Public Hearing on Water Special Improvements Assessment Roll 2026-W-1
Hearing
Anchorage Assembly Public Hearing on Sewer Special Improvements LUC Roll 2026-S-1
Hearing
Public Comment Deadline: Regulatory Commission of Alaska: Notice of Utility Tariff Filing (ENSTAR)
Public notice
Public Comment Deadline: Regulatory Commission of Alaska: Notice of Utility Tariff Filing (G&K)
Public notice
About Utility Rates
Utility rates in Alaska take in what households and businesses pay for electricity, natural gas, heating fuel, water, sewer and trash service. The Regulatory Commission of Alaska reviews rate cases and tariffs for many utilities, while city councils and assemblies set rates for municipal systems.
Railbelt electric cooperatives such as Golden Valley Electric, Matanuska Electric Association and Homer Electric Association pass fuel and purchased power costs through to members, and the supply of Cook Inlet natural gas shapes their bills. Village utilities add fuel surcharges that can change sharply with the cost of diesel.
Recurring questions include monthly bill increases, prepaid and community solar options, harbor and passenger fees, and charges for disconnection. The Anchorage water utility, AWWU, files its water and sewer rates with state regulators.
More from Utility Rates
Juneau water and sewer bills go up 5 percent a year through 2030
Juneau's water and sewer bills go up 5 percent a year through 2030. The utility runs on ratepayers alone, and voters rejected a bond to share the load.
by Melinda Communities.News2mo ago2 min read
Juneau harbor board weighs charter passenger fee of $7.50, up from $2.05
Juneau's port director wants to raise the charter passenger fee at Statter Harbor to $7.50 per person, up from $2.05, to help fund harbor expansion.
by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago2 min read
Week of Aug 31
Ketchikan has five years to start disinfecting the sewage it discharges
Ketchikan's sewage plant does not disinfect what it discharges. EPA gave it five years to change that, and voters approved $15 million to do it.
by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago2 min read
Fairbanks' utility is writing down when it would start turning off your power
Fairbanks' electric co-op is writing rules for when it would start rotating outages. It has run short on reserve power 236 of the last 250 days.
by Melinda Communities.News2mo ago2 min read
ENSTAR wants to raise most gas hookup charges in Southcentral Alaska in 2027
ENSTAR wants to raise most natural gas hookup charges in Southcentral Alaska in 2027, with the basic service-line fee up about $46 and higher meter costs.
by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago2 min read
Homer Electric reports $2.2 million June operating loss as purchased power costs run over budget
Homer Electric lost $2.2 million in June as purchased power costs ran over budget, pushing year-to-date margins $1 million below target.
by Bill AlaskaNews2mo ago2 min readFrom 
Rural Alaska's internet funding is changing hands as an old federal program ends
The federal program funding phone and internet in remote Alaska is ending, and three co-ops just drew some of its last payments — $14.86 million.
by Melinda Communities.News2mo ago2 min read
Cordova raises its tax on rooms, rentals and alcohol to 14 percent
Cordova raised its tax on hotel rooms, alcohol, tobacco and rentals to 14 percent, and pulled boat rentals into it. Collections are running behind last year.
by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago2 min read
A power surcharge in Manley Hot Springs would nearly triple
The fuel surcharge on Manley Hot Springs electric bills would nearly triple under a new filing, while state rural power assistance stays where it is.
by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago1 min read
GVEA's fuel charge drops 12.6%, reversing about a third of June's increase
GVEA's fuel charge dropped 12.6 percent Tuesday, cutting about $15 from monthly bills for Interior members, though the rate remains far above pre-summer levels after diesel prices spiked.
by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago2 min read
Matanuska Electric's next CEO inherits a gas contract that expires in 2029 and years of rising bills
Clay Koplin takes over as Matanuska Electric CEO on Jan. 7, 2027, as the cooperative braces for rising natural gas costs that could push member bills up 5% yearly for three years.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 2mo ago2 min read
ENSTAR raised its gas line relocation estimates and Mat-Su road budgets absorb the cost
ENSTAR nearly doubled its estimates on eight Mat-Su road projects. The borough has to absorb it, and there is no other gas utility it could call.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 2mo ago1 min read
Week of Aug 24
A rural Alaska phone company says a subsidy cut costs $185 per connection
Alaska Power & Telephone told the FCC that ending a rural subsidy would cost the company $1.1 million yearly across its 40 remote communities.
by Melinda Communities.News2mo ago2 min read
Alaska's transmission tariff would grandfather 11 existing agreements
Alaska created a body to end the tolls utilities charge each other for moving power. Its plan would leave 11 existing agreements in place indefinitely.
by Melinda Communities.News2mo ago1 min read
Chugach wants another cent for the gas it sells to itself
Chugach wants to raise the price it charges itself for its own gas to $8.14. It was $2.73 in early 2021, and surcharges are driving the climb.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 2mo ago1 min read
Alaska electricity prices eased in June, but not for households
Alaska's overall electricity price dropped in June, but the savings went almost entirely to industry while residential bills stayed flat and are still higher than last year.
by Alaska News2mo ago1 min read
Week of Aug 17
Enstar tells legislators it's 18 days short of gas for winter
Enstar told legislators it's 18 days, about 3 Bcf, short of gas for a normal winter after two supplies fell through, with deals underway still leaving a gap.
by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago3 min read
Manley Hot Springs surcharge would nearly triple under a filing before regulators
Manley Hot Springs electric customers face a cost-of-power surcharge nearly three times higher on Sept. 1. The state credit that offsets it does not move.
by Maggie AlaskaNews2mo ago2 min read
Juneau's charter operators could see their per-passenger fee more than triple, as the harbor fund runs low
Juneau's charter operators could see their per-passenger fee jump from $2.05 to $7.50, as the harbor fund hits a record low amid major expansion costs.
by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago2 min readFrom 
Homer Electric members will be able to buy into shared solar starting in February
Homer Electric members can buy into shared solar or wind starting around mid-February. Subscribers will pay a monthly fee nobody has put a number on yet.
by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago1 min read
A remote Alaska island is paying $7.55 a gallon to heat its homes
A remote Alaska island is paying $7.55 a gallon for heat, plus an undisclosed city surcharge. The city blames Middle East conflict for the delivered price.
by Alaska News2mo ago2 min read
Golden Valley Electric has rules for community solar and no community solar
Golden Valley Electric now has approved rules for community solar and no community solar. Someone outside the utility has to build it first.
by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago1 min read
ENSTAR seeks a Southcentral gas rate hike as two landlords move to dismiss the case
ENSTAR wants to raise Southcentral gas bills by about $9 a month, and two landlords are moving to get the rate case thrown out before its September hearing.
by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago2 min read
Alaska regulators may open the grid to far more home and community solar
Alaska regulators may raise the rooftop and community solar limit from 1.5% to 20% of a utility's demand, opening the grid to far more customer-owned power.
by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago2 min read