Clark Public Utilities electric rates and bills

Clark Public Utilities' price per kWh in four readings

Clark Public Utilities is a public power district: no shareholders, and a Board of Commissioners elected by Clark County voters adopts its budgets and rates. It had 223,119 residential customers in 2025, 6.7%¹ of Washington's total.

The question "what does a kWh cost" has four honest answers, depending on the period:

None of these is a tariff line. EIA divides the revenue Clark collected from homes by the kWh those homes used, so the result folds in the flat monthly basic charge that the utility's rates page lists next to its single energy charge per kWh; the basic charge is owed even in a month with no use. That is why every average sits above the energy charge, and why a light-use month can read higher than the 12-month figure: fewer kWh share the same fixed charge.

Clark Public UtilitiesWashington average, all providers

Source: EIA-861M monthly sales and revenue by utility; EIA, Electric Power Monthly / EIA-861M sales and revenue by state. Residential revenue divided by kWh in each month, as reported to EIA's monthly survey (EIA-861M; months since January 2026 preliminary).

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Month	Clark Public Utilities (¢/kWh)	kWh per customer	Bill per customer
January 2025	9.75¢	1,467	$143.01
February 2025	10.27¢	1,209	$124.19
March 2025	10.50¢	1,078	$113.22
April 2025	11.09¢	811	$89.94
May 2025	11.20¢	772	$86.45
June 2025	11.14¢	796	$88.67
July 2025	10.70¢	980	$104.78
August 2025	10.73¢	964	$103.41
September 2025	11.34¢	731	$82.94
October 2025	10.97¢	857	$94.01
November 2025	10.64¢	1,004	$106.81
December 2025	10.32¢	1,224	$126.30
January 2026	9.76¢	1,384	$135.04
February 2026	10.56¢	1,050	$110.83
March 2026	10.52¢	1,068	$112.38
April 2026	10.73¢	958	$102.85
May 2026	11.21¢	770	$86.37
June 2026	11.07¢	818	$90.56
July 2026	10.83¢	917	$99.33
August 2026	10.87¢	897	$97.49

The last increase was in March 2024

Clark's Board of Commissioners approved an average electric rate increase for all customer classes effective March 1, 2024, raising both the residential basic charge and the energy charge. The utility's release said rates had not changed since 2011 and pointed to higher power supply costs, more frequent extreme weather and the cost of complying with carbon reduction and renewable energy requirements.

That timing shapes the annual figures. Calendar 2024 still included January and February at the old rates; between the two years the residential average rose 2.1%, from 10.41¢ per kWh to 10.63¢ per kWh. Washington's statewide residential average rose 10.7%⁵ over the same two years. Clark's average bill slipped from $104.88 to $104.50 (−0.4%), because use per home fell from 1,008 kWh³ to 983 kWh¹ a month.

For 2026 there was no electric change. When the commissioners adopted the 2026 electric, generating and water budgets, the utility announced that electric rates remain unchanged and water rates increase on January 1 (release of December 3, 2025). EIA's monthly survey agrees: the 12-month average of 10.66¢ per kWh (September 2025 to August 2026) is almost the same as calendar 2025, and the August 2026 reading was +1.3%² on a year earlier. Statewide, Washington's 12-month average was up 11.9% on the 12 months before, and its August 2026 average up 7.2%⁴ on a year earlier. Monthly figures for 2026 are preliminary.

Second lowest among large US utilities

Among the 177 US utilities with 100,000 or more residential customers that report a full-service price, Clark Public Utilities was the 2nd lowest of 177 in 2025. Only Magic Valley Electric Cooperative (Texas) averaged less (10.51¢ per kWh); the median of the group was 15.07¢ per kWh. Clark was also 26.6% below the national average for public power¹.

Inside Washington the picture is different, because the state's smaller public utilities include some of the lowest prices in the country. Clark ranked 14th highest of the 28 Washington utilities with 10,000 or more residential customers, while PUD No 1 of Douglas County averaged 3.17¢ per kWh. Against the statewide average, which includes the investor-owned utilities, Clark was 19.3% below the Washington average. Among Washington's large utilities in the chart below, Clark had the lowest 2025 average, ahead of Tacoma Public Utilities (11.45¢ per kWh) and Snohomish County PUD (12.08¢ per kWh), with Puget Sound Energy at 17.01¢ per kWh¹.

Clark Public Utilities (WA)10.63¢

Tacoma Public Utilities (WA)11.45¢

Snohomish County PUD (WA)12.08¢

Avista (WA)14.16¢

Pacific Power (WA)14.33¢

Seattle City Light (WA)14.74¢

Puget Sound Energy (WA)17.01¢

Source: EIA-861 annual electric power industry report, 2025 final. EIA-861 2025 final. Average revenue per kWh is all charges divided by kWh; it is not a tariff rate.

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Utility	average residential price (bundled customers)
Clark Public Utilities (WA)	10.63¢
Tacoma Public Utilities (WA)	11.45¢
Snohomish County PUD (WA)	12.08¢
Avista (WA)	14.16¢
Pacific Power (WA)	14.33¢
Seattle City Light (WA)	14.74¢
Puget Sound Energy (WA)	17.01¢

Across the Columbia from Portland General Electric

Clark County faces Multnomah County, Oregon, across the Columbia River, and average prices on the two banks differ widely. In 2025, residential customers of Portland General Electric, whose territory includes Clackamas County, Columbia County, Marion County, Multnomah County, Polk County, Washington County and Yamhill County⁶, paid an average of 18.79¢ per kWh, against 10.63¢ per kWh¹ at Clark. Over the last 12 months (September 2025 to August 2026) the gap held: 19.03¢ per kWh for PGE, 10.66¢ per kWh² for Clark.

Bills are closer than prices, because a Clark home uses more electricity: 983 kWh a month in 2025, against 753 kWh for a PGE home. The average monthly bill was $104.50 at Clark and $141.56¹ at PGE; nationally it was $150.68⁷. These are territory-wide averages for each utility, not prices for any city.

Clark Public Utilities (WA)$104.50

Tacoma Public Utilities (WA)$105.14

Snohomish County PUD (WA)$113.29

Pacific Power (OR)$133.04

Portland General Electric (OR)$141.56

Source: EIA-861 annual electric power industry report, 2025 final. EIA-861 2025 final. Average revenue per kWh is all charges divided by kWh; it is not a tariff rate.

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Utility	average monthly residential bill
Clark Public Utilities (WA)	$104.50
Tacoma Public Utilities (WA)	$105.14
Snohomish County PUD (WA)	$113.29
Pacific Power (OR)	$133.04
Portland General Electric (OR)	$141.56

Where Clark's electricity comes from

Clark buys most of its power rather than generating it. Its integrated resource plan page gives its 2024 fuel mix: the largest share was hydropower purchased from the federal Bonneville Power Administration (BPA), followed by output from its own River Road natural gas combined-cycle plant, then unspecified market purchases, nuclear and wind. The same page notes that its long-term purchase agreements with BPA expire in 2028.

Winter sets the size of the bill

60.6% of Washington households heated mainly with electricity in 2025, according to the Census Bureau (8th highest⁸ among the states; a survey estimate with a margin of error), and Clark's monthly data show the heating season clearly. Over the last 12 months use per home ranged from 731 kWh in September 2025 to 1,384 kWh in January 2026, and the average bill in those two months from $82.94 to $135.04. Averaged over those 12 months (September 2025 to August 2026), a home used 973 kWh a month for a computed bill of $103.73².

731Sep

857Oct

1,004Nov

1,224Dec

1,384Jan

1,050Feb

1,068Mar

958Apr

770May

818Jun

917Jul

897Aug

Source: EIA-861M monthly sales and revenue by utility. kWh per residential customer in each month (EIA-861M; months since January 2026 preliminary). The table adds the average bill and price for the month.

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Month	kWh per customer	Bill per customer	¢/kWh
September 2025	731	$82.94	11.34¢
October 2025	857	$94.01	10.97¢
November 2025	1,004	$106.81	10.64¢
December 2025	1,224	$126.30	10.32¢
January 2026	1,384	$135.04	9.76¢
February 2026	1,050	$110.83	10.56¢
March 2026	1,068	$112.38	10.52¢
April 2026	958	$102.85	10.73¢
May 2026	770	$86.37	11.21¢
June 2026	818	$90.56	11.07¢
July 2026	917	$99.33	10.83¢
August 2026	897	$97.49	10.87¢

Annual use per Clark home (983 kWh¹ a month in 2025) was above both the Washington average of 945 kWh and the national 874 kWh⁷, so a low price per kWh does not translate into an equally low bill.

Rooftop solar and time-of-use

Clark reported 3,220 residential net-metered solar installations in 2025, with 23.7 megawatts of capacity: 14.4 per 1,000 residential customers, against 19.4 across Washington and 40.3 at PGE. The residential rate on its rates page is one energy charge plus the basic charge, with no time-of-use option listed, and EIA counted 0.0%⁹ of Washington residential customers on time-varying pricing in 2025.

Outages in 2025

The average Clark customer was without power for 298 minutes in 2025 under IEEE 1366 definitions, fewer than the Washington average of 383 minutes, across 1.63 interruptions. Strip out major event days, the days of extreme events such as storms that utilities report separately, and the total falls to 51 minutes¹⁰. The difference is the major-event share of the year, which varies widely from one year to the next.

Service area, businesses and help with bills

EIA's service-territory records place Clark Public Utilities in Clark County⁶ only, and Washington has no retail choice (0.0%¹ of residential customers bought from another supplier in 2025). The address decides the utility; the utility's own records settle a given street.

Clark Public Utilities onlyClark Public Utilities and other utilitiesOther utilities

Source: EIA-861 2025, service territory; Census Bureau, Cartographic boundary file, counties. EIA-861 2025 service territory: 1 counties. Counts whole counties even where the utility serves only part of one; check the utility's own service-area map for an address.

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County	Other utilities reporting service
Clark County	Bonneville Power Administration

Business prices were lower still in 2025: 8.76¢ per kWh on average for 20,659 commercial accounts (a typical monthly bill of $480.46) and 6.11¢ per kWh for 31 industrial accounts. Over all 243,809 accounts, residential included, the average was 9.41¢ per kWh¹.

For households behind on bills, the federal Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program sent Washington $61.5 million¹² for fiscal 2026; our guide to help paying an electric bill covers how to apply. The state-level numbers are on electricity in Washington.