MEA power bills fall $5.32 a month starting Oct. 1 as fuel charge drops 8.4%

Matanuska Electric Association (MEA) members started paying less for power on Oct. 1, 2026, after the co-op's Cost of Power Adjustment fell from 10.195 cents to 9.34 cents per kilowatt-hour, an 8.4 percent cut, according to a member notice filed with the Regulatory Commission of Alaska.

A typical residential member who uses 623 kilowatt-hours a month will pay about $5.32 less, dropping the monthly bill from roughly $171.38 to $166.06, about $64 a year back for a Palmer or Wasilla household at the same usage level.

The change is entirely in the Cost of Power Adjustment line, which covers fuel and the electricity MEA buys from other utilities and is passed through to members without markup. Base rates, which fund operating, maintaining and improving the distribution system, are not changing for the fourth quarter.

MEA attributes the decrease to lower costs for purchased electricity and a smaller true-up for past power supply expenses, though the co-op says higher expected fuel and transportation costs during the colder months will partially offset the savings.

Cost of Power Adjustment rates reset every quarter and are filed with the Regulatory Commission of Alaska for review and approval. The next adjustment takes effect at the start of the first quarter of 2027.

The Matanuska-Susitna Borough has a certified population of 117,412 and 51,170 housing units, according to the DCRA Community Database Online, meaning the rate change touches tens of thousands of meters across the Valley.