Summary of Decision
Spire Rate Case
(GR-2025-0107)
Background:
In November 2024, Spire gas utility requested a 15% rate increase. Consumers Council of Missouri (“CCM”) intervened in this case, filed expert testimony challenging Spire’s request, encouraged public testimony at hearings, and ultimately secured several consumer victories through negotiation with the utility and other parties. On Wednesday, September 3, 2025, the MoPSC approved a settlement of all issues in this case.
Key Wins for Residential Customers
- Rate Request Reduced: Spire’s original request for a 15% rate increase was reduced to an average 10% increase.
- Residential Households Protected: The large industrial and commercial customers wanted residential households to pay for a larger percentage of the rate increase. Our evidence showed that applying the increase unevenly would have resulted in households subsidizing large customers. The settlement ensures that the percentage impact is roughly the same across all sizes of customer classes.
- Limited Fixed Monthly Charge Increase: The fixed monthly customer charge will increase from $20 to $22 but our advocacy prevented a higher increase. A lower customer charge gives consumers more control over their bills when they engage in energy conservation and energy efficiency.
- Continuation of Customer Assistance Programs: Current assistance programs for customers are extended, including the income-eligible Payment Partner Program and the Critical Medical Needs program, through September 2028.
- New Low-Income Assistance Program: An income-eligible program will be created for low-income families. Essentially, the monthly $22 customer charge will be waived for those who qualify for LIHEAP energy assistance.
- ISRS Reporting Requirements: The new Spire settlement includes Infrastructure System Replacement Surcharge (“ISRS”) reporting requirements for which Consumers Council advocated. Our hope is that this new public reporting information will help us drill down into what is going on with the ISRS surcharge and help us find ways to ensure that it is operating correctly.
We Predict that Household Gas Bills Will Continue to Rise
Household natural gas rates have skyrocketed since 2021. As we reported, the average Spire East customer has already experienced a +62% increase in their winter bill since winter 2020-2021, and +109% increase for Spire West customers. The main reason for this outrageous spike in Spire’s rates is ISRS, which raises bills outside of rate cases like this one. ISRS is a gas pipeline replacement and relocation charge.
While the result in this case is better than what was originally requested by Spire, the relief may be short lived. In a new law, promoted by Spire and MoPSC Chair Kayla Hahn, the Missouri Legislature passed a “Future Test Year” methodology as part of Senate Bill 4 in April 2025. Signed by Governor Kehoe, this law will add forward-looking estimates of costs to be included in natural gas bills, instead of audited historical costs. Consumers Council estimates that this will cause another 10% increase in gas bills (an average of $276 per year per household) in the next rate case filed by Spire.
