HOUSTON -- CenterPoint Energy’s proposal to raise residential natural gas rates by $4.25 a month has drawn a rebuke from Houston Mayor Bill White. Speaking at a City Council meeting Tuesday, White called the proposal "excessive," and noted that CenterPoint increased its pension benefits earlier this year. "I think that raises a red flag," White said. "It is extraordinarily unusual." CenterPoint must get clearance from the Houston City Council before it can increase the "base rate" that residential customers pay in their monthly natural gas bills. The utility is requesting the $4.25 increase in part to cover increased pension obligations, White said. "I find it unusual that someone would seek to raise pension benefits and then ask the ratepayer to cover it," he said. White will ask the City Council to vote to "disapprove" the rate increase application at a meeting next week. The move is largely symbolic, because the City Council has little power over the rates that a public utility charges. Instead, that authority rests with the Texas Railroad Commission. Alicia Dixon, a CenterPoint energy spokesperson, said the rate increase would help the utility raise $25.4 million. "Over time, revenues for the Houston Division have not kept pace with increasing costs, including costs for labor and benefits, materials and supplies, and other operating expenses, while customer usage has declined," she said. As for the pension expense, Dixon said CenterPoint was forced to spend more money on pension benefits this year because of the 2008 stock market crash. "CenterPoint Energy is not asking to fund increased pensions for our employees but instead have higher pension expenses because the value of the assets underlying our pension funds has declined because of the recession," she said.
