Hazelwood Utility Bills Set to Go Up $10 in the New Year

Running all those electric devices in your Hazelwood home is set to become more expensive when the New Year rolls around. 

The Missouri Public Service Commission has given its approval to a rate increase request by Ameren Missouri that will add about $10 a month to the average electric bill, starting Jan. 2. 

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The Missouri Public Service Commission approved the $260 million rate increase for the utility's approximately 1.2 million Missouri customers Dec. 12.

The actual rise in your monthly bill will be dependent upon your usage.

The commission's approved rate increase is actually less than the $376 million Ameren requested last February. At that time the company said the increase was necessary to cover higher fuel costs, pay for improvements to the local electric grid and fund energy-efficiency programs. 

Missouri residents could also see their utility bills go up even more next year. Laclede Gas Co. has put in its own filling for a rate increase with the Missouri Public Service Commission.

The $48 million request is the utility's first general one in three years and will raise the average utility bill by approximately $5 per month if approved.