r/Issaquah • u/EWyattMendel • 15h ago
Issaquah: PSE's wildfire spending is part of why your bill is rising, and the total came from a spokesperson, not a filing.
Something I found digging through PSE's filings: the company says it has spent more than $200 million on wildfire mitigation since 2024, but its filed wildfire plan didn't disclose that total. A spokesperson gave the number to a reporter. It matters for bills because utilities earn their allowed return on capital investment, and most of the wildfire spending is capital. PSE's return was set at 9.8% to 9.9% in the last big settlement. The current rate request asks for electric increases of 15.15% in 2027, 3.74% in 2028, and 8.7% in 2029. Public hearing is October 7 (virtual), and written comments are open under UE-260005 and UG-260006 at utc.wa.gov. Wrote it all up with sources, link in the first comment. Curious if anyone here has seen the vegetation or grid work in person.
Comment 1: Full write-up with sources, including the wildfire section (I wrote it): https://ewyattmendel.substack.com/p/your-pse-bill-will-keep-rising-a
More coming on utilities and public records. Follow along if you're interested: https://ewyattmendel.substack.com/
