KCAW news reported this morning that utility customers in Sitka will be paying twenty-percent more on their bills in December, thanks to an electricity rate surcharge going into effect now.

While this is correct, it’s not entirely straightforward. A surcharge of $.03 on Sitka’s base electric rate of $.09 kWh is an increase of thirty-three percent — for electricity alone.

However, the overall impact of the surcharge on a typical utility bill in Sitka will be twenty-percent.

Here’s an exchange between assembly member Terry Blake and Jay Sweeney that might help explain the situation:

Again, the actual electric surcharge is 33-percent. The surcharge will be in place for a year, as reported.