Slight decrease coming for Westar electric bills

Westar Energy customers will see a slight decrease in part of their electric bills next year as rates are adjusted to reflect lower-than-estimated property taxes, the company announced Monday.

Westar’s property-tax bill is a direct pass-through cost to consumers and is collected through a surcharge on customers’ bills. The surcharge is adjusted annually to compensate for estimates that are too high or too low when the company’s rates are set in periodic state rate cases.

This year, Westar collected $44.4 million on the property tax surcharge, said Gina Penzig, a spokeswoman for Westar. In 2017, that will drop to $17.4 million, she said.

The $27 million difference will go to Westar customers in the form of a rate decrease starting in January. It will amount to about $1.20 a month for the average customer, Penzig said.

The reduction is mandatory, although it will be reviewed by the Kansas Corporation Commission to ensure it has been properly calculated.

This story was originally published December 5, 2016 at 4:57 PM with the headline "Slight decrease coming for Westar electric bills."