By TOMMY REZAC
St. Joseph Post
Evergy has fielded a number of questions from customers across the region who are wondering how their electric bills will be affected by the extreme cold last week.
Evergy's communications manager Kaley Bohlen confirms that the Kansas City-based power company will not be raising electric rates in the wake of record-cold temperatures.
"But, bills may be higher based on the amount of electricity used during the extremely cold weather," Bohlen said. "So, the cost you see on your bill varies on how much electricity you use."
Evergy conducted controlled blackouts across their service area last week to conserve energy on the strained power grid. Over 60,000 customers experienced these outages last week, as lows plunged into the 20s below zero.
Bohlen says Evergy has several resources and programs available for people who might have difficulty paying a higher-than-usual electric bill.
Evergy has their online Average Payment Plan available.
There's also LIHEAP in Missouri and the Low Income Energy Assistance Program (LIEAP) in Kansas to help those struggling to pay utility bills.
The application period for those programs closes March 4.
"We also work with hundreds of social service agencies across our communities to provide budget and bill assistance. So, if you need assistance, you can call 211 to identify local agencies that may be able to help you."
Bohlen says Evergy thanks customers for their patience and for conserving electricity during a difficult stretch of weather.
"That really helped prevent larger, longer outages that we could have faced," she said.
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