Nevada utility regulators unanimously rejected a request by NV Energy to raise base service charges for Northern Nevada customers by 175 percent, instead granting the utility a fraction of the amount it requested on Tuesday.

NV Energy, the state’s largest electric utility, wanted to raise the base service charge (the flat rate customers pay just to use electricity) by $28.80 per month for single-family homes, while also lowering the amount customers pay for actual energy use.

The request would raise the base cost of service in Northern Nevada from $16.50 to $45.30 per month, making it the highest in the United States “by a significant margin,” according to the state’s Bureau of Consumer Protection.

NV Energy, which serves nearly 328,000 customers in Northern Nevada, had argued that the price change would ensure more stable monthly electric bills. The utility also said it would simultaneously halve the cost customers pay per kilowatt-hour for electricity, a move the utility said would not result in a net increase in average customer bills but opponents said would penalize those who conserve energy or use solar power.

The proposed rate increase sparked widespread public outcry, with more than 250 people voicing strong reactions at multiple consumer meetings organized by utility regulators, and groups ranging from the Nevada Conservation League to Solar United Neighbors voicing vocal opposition.

The Solar Energies Industry Association described the proposal as “extremely unfounded” and alleged that NV Energy was attempting to circumvent legal protections for net energy meter customers “under the guise of bill stability.”

Instead, the three-member Public Utilities Commission of Nevada approved a $2-per-month, or 12 percent, increase for single-family homes in Northern Nevada. The new monthly charges, which go into effect in October, put Northern Nevada customers on par with the basic service charges their Southern Nevada counterparts pay.

“NV Energy teams are already analyzing the various components of the order and what it means for Northern Nevada customers’ bills and rates,” a utility spokesperson said in an email.

Commissioner Randy Brown said NV Energy’s original request was “far too high.”

According to Advanced Energy United, a national trade association focused on clean energy, the highest flat rate in the country for investor-owned utilities is $34.71, in Mississippi. The national average is $11.66 for 170 other investor-owned utilities.

“Today’s decision not only prevents a disastrous rate increase for households, but also shows that the PUCN has listened to consumers’ concerns,” Emilie Olson, Nevada leader of Advanced Energy United, said in an email. “By instead choosing to impose a modest increase, the PUCN’s vote demonstrates a commitment to prioritizing affordability for all consumers, protecting Northern Nevada ratepayers from unfair monthly rate increases, and setting a positive precedent that will help prevent similarly severe increases in basic service costs for Southern Nevada consumers.”

In its draft order, the commission found that the proposed increase was “excessively large and not in the public interest,” noting that it would disproportionately impact low-usage customers and discourage energy conservation. The order refuted NV Energy’s arguments about price stability, noting that most of the volatility in customers’ bills came from fuel costs.

NV Energy generates its electricity from a portfolio that includes coal, solar, geothermal and natural gas. The U.S. Energy Information Administration expects natural gas prices to remain lower in 2024 than in previous years due to higher-than-normal supplies. More than half of the electricity used in Nevada is generated by natural gas plants.

If natural gas prices rise again, opponents of the rate hike argued, customers’ bills would rise as well. NV Energy countered that raising the base service charge and lowering the amount paid for use would keep prices more stable in times of volatile natural gas prices.

In its original request, NV Energy described the base service charge increase as necessary to cover capital expenditures in Northern Nevada, including expanding service and addressing a financial shortfall caused by net metering — credits that residential solar producers get for adding electricity to the grid. To do so, the utility said it would have to recoup nearly $106 million annually from ratepayers, the largest portion, $95 million, of which came from residential electricity users.

Energy regulators also limited the requested rate increases to private users and natural gas customers.

NV Energy requested an increase in the base service charge paid by multifamily residential users from $8 to $18.80 per month; the commission instead allowed an increase to $9.25. The utility is also allowed to increase the base service charge for its small commercial and natural gas customers from $14 to $16, down from the $18 NV Energy requested.

The commission also lowered NV Energy’s overall request by setting the shareholder return on equity at 9.65 percent. This is a small increase from the current rate of 9.5 percent, but well below the utility’s proposed increase to 10.4 percent.