Beginning in November 2025, electricity bills will be restructured for residential customers. The electric delivery section of the bill will now include a Base Services Charge as a separate line item, and customers may also experience a reduction in the cost per kilowatt-hour (kWh) for electricity usage.

In June 2022, the California Legislature passed Assembly Bill (AB) 205, mandating that the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) and electric utilities change the way residential customers’ electric bills are structured. The intent of AB 205 is to encourage electrification and make electric rates more affordable.

This change becomes effective October or November of 2025. The charge will appear on your bill as “Base Services Charge” under the “Delivery Charges” section of your bill.

The Base Services Charge is designed by the state to cover the costs connecting each customer to the electric grid and providing state programs to assist income-qualified customers.

The Base Services Charge is not a new fee or tax, but rather a change in how electric bills are structured. Currently, both fixed costs and electricity usage costs are combined into energy usage charges on bills for residential customers. The new law (Assembly Bill 205) requires costs to be separated into a Base Services Charge to cover the cost of certain electrical equipment and services, and variable electricity delivery charges based on the electricity the customer uses during their billing period. This means that instead of paying for certain infrastructure costs through the variable electricity rate, customers will pay these costs through a standard fee, regardless of how much electricity they use.

All residential customers including homeowners, renters, and solar customers will have a Base Services Charge on their bill. The charge amount will vary because some customers who are enrolled in income qualified programs like California Alternate Rates for Energy (CARE) or Family Electric Rate Assistance (FERA) or who live in qualifying housing communities knows as deed-restricted affordable housing are eligible for a discounted Base Services Charge amount.

The exact monthly amount of your Base Services Charge depends on the number of days in your billing cycle. This daily charge:

• $6.00 per month for CARE-enrolled customers, assessed via an approximate daily charge of $0.20
• $12.08 per month for FERA-enrolled customers and those in eligible deed-restricted affordable housing*, assessed via an approximate daily charge of $0.40
• $24.15 per month for customers not enrolled in any of these programs, assessed via an approximate daily charge of $0.80

To calculate your new Base Services Charge per month, multiply the applicable daily charge by the number of days in your billing period.

* Deed-restricted affordable housing properties are identified by the California Housing Partnership and defined as an affordable rental home that is restricted by the rules of state or federal subsidies to residents who have incomes at or below 80 percent of the Area Media Income. For more information, visit chpc.net.

Prior to the implementation of the Base Services Charge, which will start in October or November 2025, the costs of maintaining the electric grid have been included in the variable energy delivery charges on customers’ bills. With the restructuring, the costs of things like meters and other equipment, which keep your home connected to the electric grid, will be separated from the variable electricity charges. These costs will now be covered primarily by the Base Services Charge, which will be a set daily charge on residential customer bills each month.

The CPUC sets the statewide Base Services Charge amount and determines whether to make any changes to it. However, the Base Services Charge amount has been set by the CPUC, with no indication as to if or when the charge may change. The Base Services Charge is converted to a daily charge to collect the total amount across the average month. Thus, your Base Services Charge total may vary slightly depending on the number of days in your billing cycle, but you will not be charged more or less in total across the year.

Yes, these variable charges can change throughout the year as approved by the CPUC. However, the new Base Services Charge may reduce the variable cost per kilowatt-hour (kWh) by approximately 10%*.

* Estimated as of March 1, 2025.

The Base Services Charge may cause your bill to increase or decrease compared to a bill without the Base Services Charge. Generally, the lower volumetric charges per kilowatt-hour (kWh) will help offset the Base Services Charge, but is dependent on a customer's specific level of usage. Customers with higher-than-average usage may see a bill decrease, while customers with lower-than-average usage, who are not on income-qualified program, may see a bill increase.

This change will not impact participation in your current rate plan (e.g. Time-of-Use or Tiered) or any other programs or discounts you receive, like Medical Baseline Allowance, California Alternate Rates for Energy (CARE), or Family Electric Rate Assistance (FERA).

Your Base Services Charge is not based on your energy use and cannot be lowered by reducing your energy consumption. Customers cannot opt out of paying the Base Services Charge. All residential homes are connected to the grid and require the necessary infrastructure to receive power. You can find out if you’re eligible for an income-qualified discount such as California Alternate Rates for Energy (CARE) and Family Electric Rate Assistance (FERA) to see if you qualify for a lower Base Services Charge. Visit SCE.com/assistance.

You can visit U to learn about ways to lower your energy usage or see if you qualify for income-based discount programs such as California Alternate Rates for Energy (CARE) and Family Electric Rate Assistance (FERA). You can also see if you qualify for free energy-efficient appliances through our Energy Saving Assistance (ESA) program at SCE.com/esa.

These are the charges to deliver the electricity you use in your home. This cost is based on how much energy you consume, measured in kilowatt-hours (kWh). After October or November 2025, you may pay a lower cost per kilowatt-hour (kWh). 

Generation Charges cover the cost of producing electricity, and Other Charges include franchise fees, as well as any city and state taxes.

Delivery and Generation charges are currently separated and will continue to be separate. The mandated restructuring will separate the Base Services Charge from variable energy usage and will include it in the delivery section of the bill. Whether you’re a high or low energy consumer, your Base Services Charge will remain consistent, while the charges for energy delivery will still vary based on your usage.

SCE has been permitted to issue bonds that enable it to recover certain costs more quickly related to preventing and mitigating catastrophic wildfires, while reducing the total cost to its customers. The Fixed Recovery Charge (FRC) has been approved by the CPUC to repay those bonds. The right to recover the FRC has been transferred to a separate entity (called the Special Purpose Entity) that issued the bonds and recovery does not belong to SCE. SCE is collecting the FRC on behalf of the Special Purpose Entity.

The Basic Charge covers the cost of metering and billing. The Base Service Charge will replace that charge and now includes the cost of certain electrical equipment and services.

Distribution, Public Purpose Program Charge, Nuclear Decommissioning, New system generation charge.

The current Basic Charge for TOU-D-Prime will be replaced with the Base Services Charge.

These structural changes reduce the price all SCE residential customers will pay for each kilowatt-hour (kWh) of electricity that they use. Separating the energy charges from the fixed charges will help keep bill amounts more predictable month-to-month.  

Utilities will not earn more profit from the Base Services Charge. They will continue to receive the same amount of compensation as they currently do for the investment they make in operating and maintaining the electric grid.

All residential customers may pay less for each kilowatt-hour (kWh) of electricity that they use. This rate reduction per kWh will lower the cost of using energy and help accelerate the state’s transition to 100% clean electricity.

Yes. The Base Services Charge is separate from electricity usage and represents each customer account’s share of supporting the ongoing operation and upkeep of the electric grid in SCE’s service area. This is no different from the Basic Charge.

The Climate Credit is not affected by the Base Services Charge.

For more information about California Assembly Bill 205, you can view the Fact Sheet.

Energy conservation is still important, primarily at specific times of day. Conservation becomes more important when solar production starts declining, generally around 4 PM.

Electrification allows customers to power their vehicles and equipment on a cleaner energy source. In addition, electricity is frequently a less costly source of fuel for the customer.

SCE works with customers affected by major disasters to assist them in recovery by providing payment arrangements as necessary, assisting with establishing service at temporary locations, ensuring our income-eligible customers receive necessary support information, and expediting rebuilding with a dedicated Service Planning team. Find more information about Disaster Support at sce.com/disastersupport.

No, the Base Services Charge was authorized in June 2022 through California Assembly Bill 205.

Yes, the Base Services Charge applies to all residential customers that are connected to SCE’s delivery system.