How much money will you get back to cover high SoCalGas bills?

Although Southern California Gas Co. customers will pay 68% less for natural gas this month than they did in January, prices are still well above last year’s levels.

Remedy may come sooner than expected: The California Public Utilities Commission will meet Thursday to consider accelerating California Climate Credit payments.

The credit was established to offset higher consumer energy costs from a cap-and-trade program through which the California Air Resources Board sells carbon pollution credits to industrial greenhouse gas emitters.

Payments, normally made in April and October, can be deferred to February. They are intended to cover the cost of a government program to cut carbon emissions, but not to respond to higher wholesale natural gas prices, a CPUC spokesman said.

The 2023 Natural Gas California Climate Credit is $50.77 for SoCalGas customers, according to the CPUC website. Customers from three other utilities in the state would be between $43.40 and $56.35.

Los Angeles Department of Water and Energy customers do not receive a credit for their electric bills because the CPUC does not regulate city utilities. The average electricity loan payment for private utility customers is about $62 and is usually split into two installments.

The payment schedule can be pushed up this year. Republican state senators wrote a letter to the commission Monday asking it to expedite the distribution of California climate credits.

The CPUC will “consider accelerating the climate credit customers receive on their bills to provide much-needed support,” the commission said in a statement.

At another meeting on February 7, the commission will “consider possible measures to mitigate the impact of volatility in the natural gas and electricity markets,” the statement said.

In the meantime, Southern California residents can follow these tips to stay warm while conserving natural gas.