IDAHO – Avista has reached a settlement agreement that was submitted to the Idaho Public Utilities Commission. The agreement, if approved, will bring changes to electric and natural gas rates in Idaho.
The settlement includes the Idaho Public Utilities Commission, Clearwater Paper Corporation, Idaho Forest Group, LLC, and Walmart Inc. It proposes an increase in annual base electric revenues by $19.5 million, or 6.3%, starting September 1. A further increase of $14.7 million, or 4.5%, is set for September 1, 2026.
For natural gas, the settlement suggests raising annual base revenues by $4.6 million, or 9.2%, as of September 1. A slight reduction of $0.2 million, or 0.4%, is expected by September 1, 2026.
“Our customers will benefit from longer recovery periods for certain deferred costs, which mitigates the bill impact of improved recovery of our costs to serve our customers,” Heather Rosentrater, Avista President and CEO, stated.
If implemented, a residential electric customer using an average of 939 kilowatt hours monthly would see a 6.7% increase, adding $6.95 to their monthly bill starting September 1. By September 2026, this would increase by 4.7%, or $5.22 more per month.
Residential gas customers using 66 therms monthly would experience a 6.8% increase, or $4.11 more on their monthly bill by September 1, with no further changes in 2026.
Avista noted that actual rate changes will vary depending on customer usage. The company initially requested a larger increase in revenues, aiming for $43 million in electric and $8.8 million in natural gas revenues by September 1.
