Councilman Calls For Investigation Into 'Abnormally High' SoCal Gas Bills
PORTER RANCH (CBSLA.com) — L.A. City Councilman Mitch Englander submitted a resolution to the city council on Tuesday calling on regulators to investigate rate increases experienced by Southern California Gas Co. customers in the wake of the massive Aliso Canyon natural gas leak.
Englander is asking the California Public Utilities Commission, which is already probing the Porter Ranch gas leak, to look into the possibility that bills are spiking in connection with the leak.
"This bill-spiking comes at a time when SoCalGas is experiencing a major disaster at its Aliso Canyon facility," Englander said. "I am simply not buying that these two incidents are not related. It appears that the entire Los Angeles basin is now feeling the effects of the Aliso Canyon gas leak.
Englander said he believes there could be a problem with the utility's meters, too.
He said elected officials across Los Angeles have received calls from SoCal Gas customers complaining of "abnormally high bills" from SoCal Gas.
More than 1,000 residents attended the meeting.
At least one SoCal Gas customer, Arthur Kalnit, told KCAL9's Rachel Kastner his bill has quintupled to $320 a month.
Englander said he was perplexed that the increases even hit Porter Ranch residents displaced by the gas leak.
"It makes no sense," he said. "If you have a vacant home and your bills double and you're not even there, something's not right. It doesn't add up."
The LA City Council is scheduled to discuss the resolution Feb. 10.
SoCalGas officials have vehemently denied any connection between bill increases and the Porter Ranch leak. According to the company, rising bills are the result of increased usage during colder winter months.
The California Public Utilities Commission also said they believe the bill increases are due to heavier usage amid cold weather.
Gas Co. officials also said that higher usage can result in customers being billed on a higher tiered rate.
The company also noted that some customers' bills were based on a billing cycle of longer than 35 days, which can increase bills by up to 30 percent.
Earlier Tuesday, Attorney General Kamala Harris and L.A. County prosecutors filed charges against SoCal Gas for failing to disclose the leak to state officials immediately.
Brad Sherman, a Democratic congressman who has a home in Porter Ranch close to the site of the gas leak, also said on Tuesday he plans to introduce legislation designed to prevent more leaks in the future.
Sherman noted that the Department of Transportation Materials Safety Administration has established federal safety regulations for natural gas transportation.
"However, PHMSA has yet to use its existing regulatory authority regarding natural gas storage," he said, adding that the legislation he plans to introduce, the Natural Gas Storage Safety Act, would direct the PHMSA to implement safety standards for natural gas storage facilities.
"This bill is a backstop," Sherman said. "If PHMSA doesn't adopt regulations using its existing authority, this bill would compel them to act."
(©2015 CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Wire services contributed to this report.)
