Liberty Utilities customers will definitely see rates go down starting May 1, but they may also go back up.

The 4.5 percent reduction starting in a month is a result of fuel costs going down.

However, the company that services the California side of the basin, Truckee and Alpine County in March asked the California Public Utilities Commission for a 5.27 percent increase to make up for “undercollected revenues due to the bad weather in January-February 2017 when energy use was down.”

The CPUC will determine the final rate increase assuming it is approved.

Residential customers will receive a $29.46 climate credit on their bills in April and October.

Per state regulations, investor-owned utilities like Liberty Utilities must file a general rate case every three years with the CPUC. Liberty last filed one in 2015, with the increase taking effect Jan. 1, 2017. This amounted to a 1 percent for residential and small commercial customers, with larger commercial entities getting about a 16 percent hike in rates.

Liberty officials are still working out the numbers to determine what amount of increase to ask for this year.

— Lake Tahoe News staff report