Mayor Karen Bass on Monday called for an outside audit of the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power’s rates and urged the utility’s governing board to expand a package of relief measures for customers facing unexpectedly high bills.
The request comes a day before the Board of Water and Power Commissioners is scheduled to consider a series of measures aimed at making utility bills more affordable following months of extreme heat and growing complaints from customers over steep electricity charges.
Bass said the independent audit should examine how LADWP rates are calculated, justified and billed, what it costs the utility to provide service and whether its rate structure could be changed to make bills more affordable and protect customers from unexpected spikes.
“Angelenos are opening bills they did not expect and cannot afford, and they need relief now,” Bass said in a statement Monday.
The mayor is asking commissioners to go further than the resolution currently scheduled for a vote Tuesday. That proposal directs LADWP staff to review how customers are charged for electricity, including the utility’s pricing tiers, seasonal rates and time-of-use rates, and recommend possible changes.
But the resolution does not currently call for the outside audit Bass requested Monday. It also calls for greater promotion of LADWP’s Level Pay and energy-efficiency programs, while Bass wants the department to consider incentives or automatic enrollment in Level Pay and increase energy-efficiency rebates by 25%.
LADWP told SCNG on Monday that details about the scope, timing, selection and funding of an outside audit should come from the Mayor’s Office. The department said whether additional action would be required to authorize an audit could become clearer at Tuesday’s board meeting.
The Mayor’s Office did not immediately provide additional details Monday about who would select the outside auditor, how the audit would be funded or when it could begin.
LADWP is also evaluating Bass’ request for incentives or automatic enrollment in Level Pay. Customers currently must choose to enroll in the program, which estimates annual utility costs and spreads payments more evenly across the year to reduce large swings between lower- and higher-use periods. Level Pay does not reduce the total amount a customer owes.
The department said it would also assess the mayor’s request to increase energy-efficiency rebates by 25%, including how much the expansion would cost. Any increase would be paid for through LADWP’s budget, according to the department.
The proposals come amid growing frustration among Angelenos who have reported unusually high utility bills following a summer marked by prolonged heat.LADWP says the increases reflect a combination of higher electricity use during the summer, components of its rates and increases in city waste and refuse charges that are also included on LADWP bills.
Los Angeles experienced 15 heat advisory days this year, compared with five in 2025, and median residential electricity use was roughly 20% higher than last year, according to LADWP. The department said that of 1.7 million combined utility and city services bills sent in August and September, more than 60% were under $500.
LADWP Interim General Manager David Hanson similarly said last week that increased electricity use, rather than rates alone, has been a major factor behind the higher bills.
“It’s not so much the rates. We get a slow growth every year in rates,” Hanson said at an Oct. 20 news conference. “It’s really usage.”
LADWP bills cover two months at a time, meaning customers receiving bills this fall may now be seeing charges for electricity consumed during some of the hottest months of the year.
The department also told SCNG Monday that it has not identified any systemic billing or meter problems connected to the recent complaints.
Hanson said last week that individual customers who believe their bills may be wrong should contact LADWP so the utility can review their accounts.
The city’s independent Office of Public Accountability, which serves as LADWP’s Ratepayer Advocate, has said several factors can combine to drive summer bills higher.
Median residential electricity use increased approximately 67% between May and August amid this summer’s intense heat waves, according to an Oct. 16 analysis by the office. Increased air-conditioning use can push customers into more expensive pricing tiers, and electricity prices in LADWP’s highest tier rise by about 25% during the June-through-September summer season.
Bills also include quarterly adjustments reflecting changing power costs, a 10% city utility users tax and a fixed monthly charge tied to the highest usage tier a customer reached during the previous 12 months, according to the Ratepayer Advocate.
The Ratepayer Advocate had called for a broader examination of LADWP’s power rates even before the latest controversy. In comments submitted to commissioners in September, the office said such a review should consider not only how costs are divided among customers, but whether rates are affordable, accurately reflect the cost of providing electricity and give customers meaningful ways to lower their bills.
Bass last week announced an initial round of relief, including a halt to residential water and electricity shutoffs for customers unable to pay through the end of the year. She also encouraged customers struggling with bills to pay what they can afford for now and directed LADWP to provide residential customers with more detailed information about their electricity and water use beginning next month.
Tuesday’s resolution would formally direct LADWP to suspend residential disconnections for nonpayment through the remainder of 2026. It also calls for expanded outreach about Level Pay, conservation programs and financial assistance.
The controversy over high LADWP bills has also emerged as an issue in the mayoral race. Challenger Nithya Raman has criticized rising utility costs under Bass and called for changes to LADWP rates, financial assistance and transparency, while Bass has defended her administration’s response and criticized Raman’s record on utility issues during her time on the City Council.
The high bills have also drawn scrutiny from City Controller Kenneth Mejia, whose office has said it plans to investigate why certain rates have increased, how LADWP’s tier system can contribute to higher costs and what additional assistance could be provided during peak seasons.
The Board of Water and Power Commissioners is scheduled to meet at 10 a.m. Tuesday.