A bit of good news...

[tinuvial]

I am on the 'budget billing' plan with my local electric company. This means that they bill me a set amount each month (easier to budget for, hence the name) and then in December each year, they 'true up' the account. In years past, this has usually meant a huge utility bill for me in December.

I've been very conscientious about being more 'green' this year. I have switched over to CFL bulbs where possible, made sure to turn off lights in unused rooms, etc. (Something I have historically not been very good about). Basically, I have a 1600-sf all electric home, and I pay $180/mo. for electricity.

I only have bill history going back to 2006, but here is what it has looked like the last few years:

2006 - $120.00/mo., final payment - $301.73
2007 - $135.00/mo., final payment - $274.78
2008 - $147.00/mo., final payment - $497.40 (remember this year really stunk)
2009 - $179.00/mo., final payment - $246.68
2010 - $179.64/mo., final payment - $134.38!!!!!!

Also, the good news for 2011 is that my budget billing amount is being reduced to $175/mo. Yeah, I know it's a small decrease, but in my mind, it's far better than an increase, and I'm going to continue to look for ways to improve my home's energy efficiency.

So for the first time in the last five years, my December electric bill was actually lower than my budget billing amount! That just put a little more into Santa's coffers, which is always a good thing.

Ciao for now.