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Anderson council approves first readings of electric rate and bond ordinances after debate on timing and transparency
Summary
The Anderson City Council gave initial approval to an electric rate ordinance and an electric-bond ordinance, citing aging infrastructure and a need to shore up operations; proponents said the package would raise revenue by 12.58% overall (13.5% for many residential customers), while some council members and residents urged more long-term planning and protections for low-income customers.
The Anderson City Council gave initial approval Jan. 22 to an ordinance proposing a 12.58% increase in electric revenue and a bond ordinance authorizing up to $5.3 million in borrowing to fund capital improvements.
Mayor Tom Broderick told the council the package is intended to shore up the electric utility’s finances and reliability after nearly two decades without meaningful revenue increases, saying, “The overall total rate increase of that would be 12.58%… residential customers… would be 13.5%.” He said the revenue and the bond would repay a $7 million redevelopment loan and fund substation, transmission and equipment upgrades to reduce outages.
Why it matters: City staff and consultants told the council that prolonged underfunding has left substations, breakers and direct-buried cable at or past their expected lives, increasing outage risk. Jennifer Wilson, who prepared the revenue-requirement analysis, said the test year used for the filing was 2024 and that the study shows a need for a…
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