Man takes 40k signature petition to LADWP board after $3,000 bill
A San Fernando Valley man took a petition with nearly 40,000 signatures to the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power's Board of Commissioners on Tuesday after he received a power and water bill for more than $3,000 earlier this month.
Micah Reed, who lives in a 2,500-square-foot West Hills home with his wife and two children, told reporters he was "not doing anything out of the ordinary" between July 25 and Sept. 23 when he was billed $3,322 from the LADWP for those two months.
"We're not living recklessly. We're keeping our thermostat at 74 degrees," Reed said. "I've done everything I possibly can to keep my house energy-efficient."
Reed initially voiced his complaints in a viral social media video, where the electric portion of his bill alone was revealed to be more than $2,100 over the pay period.
"Living in Los Angeles is already unaffordable enough," Reed said in a post to Change.org. "Running an air conditioner shouldn't force families into debt."
He paid the bill in full, he said.
"I am not here to argue about how much power my family used. I am here because I can't tell how my bill was calculated," Reed said during Tuesday's meeting, when other LADWP customers also spoke about their unusually high bills, which were difficult to understand.
He delivered the petition to the board, calling for an audit of the department, just days before the LA mayoral election. Mayor Karen Bass and her challenger, Councilmember Nithya Raman, have both supported calls for an independent audit and have vowed to make bills cheaper for residents.
"First, LADWP customers can just pay what they can afford now," Bass said. "Second, I have asked the LADWP Board to pause shutoffs through the end of the year for customers facing higher bills after the record heat."
The board did not have a chance to vote on the audit request during Tuesday's meeting, but the commission unanimously adopted a resolution to direct staff to increase outreach and education on rates, review discount programs and immediately suspend disconnection of services to residential customers due to nonpayment until the end of the year. The board plans to review the measures in the resolution in early 2027 to see what's working.
LA City Controller Kenneth Mejia has launched an investigation into the utility on the heels of increased public scrutiny.
"It doesn't sit right with me; it doesn't sit right with a lot of folks," said LA City Controller Kenneth Mejia while speaking with CBS LA. "We already did a huge data request as well to understand these bills."
CBS LA reached out to LADWP for comment, but a spokesperson said that the board's director would respond to questions at Tuesday's meeting in lieu of a statement.
Interim General Manager David Hanson said that meters are read every two months, and the bi-monthly bills are sent moths later. He encouraged customers to sign up for the LADWP's Level Pay program.
"It takes the high bills from the summer, spreads them out over the full 12 months so you have consistency," Hanson said, adding that he is also enrolled in the program.
LADWP officials said that they were also working to install smart meters that would help customers better understand their rates.
