Penticton home-based businesses no longer charged extra for power
City council opts to consolidate rates so home-based businesses will pay same as residential customers
All home-based business owners in Penticton will now pay the same for power as those who simply live in their abodes, under changes approved Tuesday by council.
Previously, some home-based businesses were charged a premium, categorized under “residential/special service,” while others were not.
In November 2017, council voted unanimously to send the matter out for public consultation.
City staff received 35 responses to the 444 letters sent out to home-based businesses, which make up around 2.5 per cent of utility customers.
A city staff report said there is “no technical reason to support the concept of homebased business paying more for energy when compared to residential customers as it would be based on usage.”
Council agreed, voting unanimously — with Coun. Helena Konanz absent — to consolidate the rates.
The financial impact to the city will be about $6,000, but those costs are offset by the reduction of utility department costs related to monitoring which residences are home-based businesses.
Mayor Andrew Jakubeit called the move a “common-sense approach.”
Council also voted to keep the status quo when it comes to “net metering” for utility customers who implement their own renewable energy sources like solar panels that can sell surplus power back onto the grid.
Coun. Andre Martin suggested connection fees of $2,000 be phased in over a fiveyear period.
“Ultimately, if somebody is able and willing to (install solar panels), I think they would have that money on hand,” said Coun. Campbell Watt.
“I don’t think phasing it in over five years is truly going to be that impactful.”
The $2,000 fee is roughly estimated to be 10 per cent of the actual connection costs. Staff informed council that a majority of net metering applications have come from businesses, most of them wineries, and currently only 20 customers take advantage of net metering.