Letters to the Editor: I won’t pay one additional dime if SoCalGas bills stay this high

To the editor: A few days ago, I wrote out a check that does not cover what I owe the Southern California Gas Co. The bill is too high for me to pay on my fixed retirement income. My fear is that I will no longer be able to afford heating my home. (“Who profits from Southern California’s high gas bills? The problem is we don’t know,” Opinion, March 13)

I had always paid my bills on time and in full. I am angry that the greedy profiteers benefiting from high natural gas prices couldn’t care less about the people who scrape by, as they hide from our scrutiny even though, according to op-ed article writer Jamie Court, they earned a fortune from spot market prices that were 10 times higher than usual.

It is my hope that they are exposed and pay a fine for not being transparent in generating windfall profits off poor people. If this continues, I hope others will join me in choosing not to pay one additional dime on our SoCalGas bills.

Carolyn Dyer, Tujunga

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To the editor: In 2022, my January gas bill was $76. This year the weather was colder, so I expected a higher bill. I was right. This January, I owed $117.

I began to leave most rooms of my house unheated and to wear three layers of clothes.

Then the February bill came at a stiff $250. I am a senior on a fixed income, and this increase stretched my budget.

I conserved more and waited for the next bill. With it came notes saying that, compared to other customers, I was doing very well. I even received a discount, but the end result was still an astonishing $346.

I don’t know what my next bill will bring, but I do hope the folks at SoCalGas responsible for these hikes have warm homes that allow them to live with fewer than three layers of clothes.

Aubrey Beauchamp, Capistrano Beach