At 1,000 kilowatt-hours a month, a Lake Worth Beach electric bill and a Florida Power & Light bill come out within a few dollars of each other. At 2,500 kilowatt-hours, the gap is more than five times that size. Lake Worth Beach runs its own electric utility, and its residential rate charges noticeably more for every kilowatt-hour past the first thousand. That makes the house's power use, not the city's headline rate, the number that sets your bill. If you are comparing Lake Worth Beach with nearby towns served by FPL, the standard 1,000 kWh comparison is the wrong place to start.
The Price Changes at Kilowatt-Hour 1,001
The city's residential schedule, on a rate sheet titled "Electric Rates Effective October 1, 2026," splits each month's usage into two blocks.
| Residential charge | First 1,000 kWh | Each additional kWh |
|---|---|---|
| Base energy | $0.08705 | $0.11227 |
| Power cost adjustment | $0.04096 | $0.05096 |
| Total per kWh | $0.12801 | $0.16323 |
Every bill also carries a $13.32 monthly customer charge. A $5.00 monthly Storm Fund Surcharge applies to all accounts, as it has since December 1, 2024. The minimum residential bill is $44.50. All of it is posted on the city's electric rate schedule.
Under that schedule, each kilowatt-hour above 1,000 costs about 27.5% more than one inside the first block. The 1,000 kWh mark is also the headline usage level in published utility comparisons, which leaves the higher-priced tier out of the most-quoted figure.
The September Comparison Shows the Gap Growing
Each month the Florida Municipal Electric Association publishes a bill comparison of the state's public and investor-owned utilities. The September 2026 report, posted October 15, 2026, was based on rates in effect before the October 1 schedule. It priced residential bills at three usage levels.
| Monthly usage, September 2026 | Lake Worth Beach | FPL, with average franchise fee | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1,000 kWh | $138.40 | $132.64 | $5.76 |
| 1,200 kWh | $170.39 | $161.18 | $9.21 |
| 2,500 kWh | $378.34 | $346.68 | $31.66 |
The FPL column includes the 6% average franchise fee the FMEA table adds to investor-owned utility bills. That makes it the fair comparison with the Lake Worth Beach total.
In September, each additional kilowatt-hour between 1,000 and 2,500 added about 16 cents to a Lake Worth Beach bill and about 14.3 cents to an FPL bill. A $5.76 gap in a light month became $31.66 in a heavy one. Over a run of high-usage summer months, a heavy-use house in Lake Worth Beach and the same house in an FPL town end up with noticeably different electric costs.
The same September report puts Lake Worth Beach's 1,000 kWh total above the $134.96 average for municipal utilities and below the $150.86 average for investor-owned utilities. That ranking describes a 1,000 kWh month.
The October Schedule Raised Both Tiers
Compared with the rates behind that September snapshot, the October 1 rate sheet raised the customer charge and both base energy rates. At the old rates, September's FMEA figures show a $12.93 customer charge. It is now $13.32. Here are the same three usage levels on the current schedule, with the Storm Fund Surcharge included:
| Monthly usage | Energy and customer charge | With $5 Storm Fund Surcharge |
|---|---|---|
| 1,000 kWh | $141.33 | $146.33 |
| 1,200 kWh | $173.98 | $178.98 |
| 2,500 kWh | $386.18 | $391.18 |
These figures are calculated by applying the posted rates directly. They are not published bills, and they don't include taxes. The FPL figures above are a September 2026 snapshot. FPL's own rates move on their own schedule.
The power cost adjustment is the part of the bill that moves most often. The city sets it from projected purchased-power costs over three-month periods and reconciles it every quarter. The city's calculation for September through November 2025 proposed a residential adjustment of $0.03396 for the first 1,000 kWh and $0.04396 above it. The October 2026 sheet lists $0.04096 and $0.05096. On a 1,000 kWh month, that difference is $7.00. Across the cited 2023, 2025 and 2026 schedules, the adjustment above 1,000 kWh has stayed exactly one cent higher than the first block. That keeps the upper tier more expensive whichever way fuel costs move.
The Money Stays in the City
Lake Worth Beach's electric rates follow from who owns the utility. The utility describes itself as citizen-owned and non-profit. Its mission statement commits it to the lowest-cost, most reliable and cleanest energy for the community, and to contributing "financially in a way only a non-profit citizen-owned utility can."
Those contributions are large. According to the city's electric utility annual report, the utility has sent $33.4 million to the city's General Fund since 2018. In the Fiscal Year 2027 proposed operating budget, General Fund revenue includes a $2,704,334 electric contribution and a separate $4,521,764 electric franchise fee. Part of what a Lake Worth Beach household pays for electricity helps fund city operations. In an FPL town, the equivalent is the franchise fee that already appears in FPL's comparison total.
The city also keeps reserves to limit sudden jumps. A Rate Stabilization Fund exists to reduce large power cost adjustment increases and their effect on customer bills. The 2024 annual report credits that fund with shielding customers from rising fuel costs, and it lists an $8 million Storm Fund for storm repairs. The $5 monthly surcharge pays into that storm fund. The reserves smooth out swings in the rates. They don't change the two-tier structure, so a home that uses a lot of power still pays the higher price for everything above 1,000 kWh.
The Service Area Extends Past the City Limits
This affects more buyers than the city name suggests. The 2024 annual report says the utility serves 27,809 customers across Lake Worth Beach, unincorporated Palm Beach County and the Village of Palm Springs, up from 24,696 in 2013. A house with a Palm Springs or unincorporated county address can be on Lake Worth Beach electric. A buyer who assumes FPL rates because the house is outside the city limits could budget wrong.
The city publishes a utility service-area lookup that searches both Palm Beach County and Lake Worth Beach addresses and parcels. Check it before you build an ownership budget for any address on the edges of the city.
Reading a House Through Its Summer Bills
With pricing like this, the house's power use belongs in the purchase decision along with its price. Jared Nelson's background in home inspection shapes how our team approaches it:
- Ask for twelve months of electric bills, not an average. An annual average hides how many kilowatt-hours fall above the 1,000 kWh line. The summer months show it.
- Count the months above 1,000 kWh. Every kilowatt-hour above that line costs $0.16323 under the October 2026 schedule, before the storm surcharge. That shows how much of the bill depends on the house itself.
- Read the inspection report with those bills in hand. The age of the air conditioning system, the condition of the ductwork, attic insulation and the pool equipment all affect how much power the house uses. Under a two-tier rate, any savings come off the most expensive kilowatt-hours.
- Rerun the numbers on current rates. A seller's bills from 2025 were priced at a lower power cost adjustment than today's. Apply the current posted rates to the past usage.
The same logic works for sellers. In a city with a higher price above 1,000 kWh, summer bills that stay near or under that line show a buyer the house runs efficiently, and they cost the seller nothing to share.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does every Lake Worth Beach electric customer pay the Storm Fund Surcharge?
Yes. The city's rate page says the $5.00 monthly Storm Fund Surcharge applies to all accounts and has been in effect since December 1, 2024.
How often does the power cost adjustment change?
The city projects it over three-month periods and reconciles it every quarter, so the second line of the rate table can move several times a year.
Is there a minimum bill?
The October 1, 2026 schedule sets a $44.50 minimum residential bill. That matters for seasonal owners whose homes sit mostly empty part of the year.
If you're weighing a home in Lake Worth Beach, Palm Springs or the unincorporated pockets the city utility serves, The Taylor Kane Group can go through the seller's summer bills alongside the inspection findings with you, so you see the real cost of running that house before you commit. Schedule a consultation and bring the address.
