League City households served by CenterPoint are paying about $566 more per year in electricity delivery charges than six years ago.
The increase was first reported by KPRC2's ENOUGH investigative team in a Sept. 17 investigation. The station found CenterPoint's per-kilowatt-hour transmission and distribution (TDU) rate rose from 4.05 cents in 2020 to 6.41 cents in 2026. A separate $4.90 monthly fee stayed the same. For a household using 2,000 kilowatt-hours a month, the higher rate adds up to roughly $566 a year.
Customers served by CenterPoint in League City, and across the Houston area, cannot switch their TDU provider. CenterPoint holds a monopoly on electricity delivery in its service territory, even though residents can choose a retail energy supplier through the competitive ERCOT market.
Where the money goes
CenterPoint told KPRC2 that customer fees cover infrastructure costs and that the company does not profit on day-to-day maintenance. The utility said capital investments are recovered gradually, over decades, through rates approved by the Public Utility Commission of Texas (PUC).
The rates matter. CenterPoint reported about $1 billion in companywide profit last year, according to SEC filings reviewed by KPRC2. CEO Jason Wells received a $3 million pay increase despite the company's own shareholder report showing it missed goals for customer satisfaction and repeat customer interruptions.
The company's Texas subsidiary, Houston Electric, posted $298 million in profit during the first half of 2026, a 32% jump over the same period in 2025, according to an Energy and Policy Institute analysis published Sept. 10.
Customers feel the squeeze
Houston-area customer Sean Gambini told KPRC2 that 41% of his September bill went to CenterPoint's TDU charge: $322.28 out of $795.61. Dan Phillips, another customer interviewed by the station, put it bluntly.
"Our electric bill has almost doubled," Phillips said.
Krysti Shallenberger of the Energy and Policy Institute told KPRC2 that utilities benefit when they propose major infrastructure projects because those investments are included in the rate base. Shallenberger also authored the institute's Sept. 10 profit analysis cited above. Tyson Slocum of Public Citizen told the station that utilities have less incentive to spend on routine maintenance, which does not qualify for the same regulated return.
No response from PUC
The PUC, made up of four commissioners and a chairman all appointed by the governor, approves the rate increases that set CenterPoint's allowed return on equity for investors. KPRC2 reported that it requested interviews with all PUC commissioners about whether CenterPoint's rising profits should factor into future rate decisions. None responded. Chairman Thomas Gleeson's office declined an interview, and Gleeson was not made available to reporters at a Houston power plant ribbon-cutting.
CenterPoint said its grid investments have prevented more than 100 million customer outage minutes in less than two years. On Aug. 11, the company announced a $5 billion affordability initiative through 2036, tied to Senate Bill 6, which shifts some infrastructure costs to large energy users consuming more than 75 megawatts, such as data centers.
No upcoming PUC rate case hearing for CenterPoint has been publicly scheduled.
