OUC DemandLevel Pricing Hits November Bills: How the New $5, $10 and $15 Demand Tiers Work

Orlando Utilities Commission customers are seeing a new line on their electric bills this month. DemandLevel, the pricing structure OUC's board approved nearly two years ago, takes effect with November 2026 bills for most residential customers. It lowers the price of each kilowatt-hour by 12.5 percent and adds a monthly demand charge of $5, $10 or $15 based on the single highest 15-minute stretch of electricity use in the prior month. OUC says about half its customers will pay less, about 30 percent will see little change, and the rest could pay up to about $7 more a month.

What is changing on the bill

Under the old structure, a household paid mainly for the total energy it used. DemandLevel splits that into two parts. The energy rate drops by 12.5 percent, which OUC told News 6 works out to about a penny per kilowatt-hour. In exchange, every account is placed in one of three demand tiers that reflect how hard the home pulled on the grid at its busiest moment.

The tier is set by the highest level of electricity used in any 15-minute window during the previous billing cycle. That means November bills reflect peak demand in October. The tier resets every month, so a household that lands in a higher tier one month can drop back down the next.

OUC's published rate schedule lists the residential tiers as follows.

A kilowatt measures how much power is drawn at once, not how much energy is used over time. Running a central air conditioner, an electric oven, a clothes dryer, a pool pump and an electric vehicle charger at the same time can push a home's demand well above what it uses on an average afternoon.

There are no fixed peak hours

Unlike time-of-use plans that charge more during set hours, DemandLevel does not have a peak window. The charge depends on when a particular household stacks up its biggest appliances, whether that happens at 6 p.m. on a weekday or 10 a.m. on a Saturday. A family that cooks dinner, runs the dryer and charges a car at once could land in Tier 3 for that single quarter hour, even if its total monthly use is modest.

That is the behavior OUC is trying to change. The utility says DemandLevel is meant to manage high-demand moments when many customers draw power at once, and to encourage customers to spread out their usage, which could reduce peak load on the system and delay the need for new generation.

Who pays more and who pays less

OUC describes the change as revenue neutral: it alters how customers are charged, not how much the utility collects overall. Its own estimates, shared with News 6, show:

• About 50 percent of customers are expected to pay less.
• About 30 percent should see little change.
• The remaining customers could pay up to about $7 more per month.

Households that use a lot of energy but spread it evenly tend to benefit from the lower per-kilowatt-hour price. Those most likely to pay more are smaller users who occasionally spike their demand, because the demand charge is a larger share of their bill. During the 2024 approval debate, residents and local officials raised concerns that seniors, single parents and people on home medical equipment may have little ability to shift their usage, and that residents of apartment complexes on shared systems could be pushed into higher tiers through no fault of their own.

How to keep a bill in the lowest tier

OUC's advice centers on staggering high-power appliances so they do not run at the same time. Suggestions include running the dryer after the oven or pool pump is off, programming thermostats to ease cooling when no one is home, and shifting pool pump operation to overnight hours, a change one customer described to News 6. The utility also offers rebates for efficiency upgrades and conservation audits.

Customers can see their past and estimated demand on the My Usage dashboard at MyOUC.com and in OUC's Energy Coach tool. Jenise Osani, OUC's vice president of customer experience and sales, told News 6 that the utility emailed customers personalized videos based on their past usage and held community sessions and town halls in October, and that more sessions could follow after the rollout. Help with bills is listed at OUC.com/assistance.

Two years in the making

DemandLevel is one piece of PeakSHIFT, a multiyear overhaul of OUC's electric pricing. The utility's five-member Board of Commissioners approved PeakSHIFT unanimously on Dec. 10, 2024, after a contentious public hearing. Central Florida Public Media reported that 16 of the 17 public speakers that day opposed the plan as written, citing possible bill increases, reduced credits for rooftop solar and fairness for customers who cannot easily change when they use power. State Rep. Anna V. Eskamani, Orlando City Commissioner Patty Sheehan and Orange County Commissioner Kelly Semrad were among those who raised concerns.

The plan as approved had three phases: a new TruNet Solar net metering structure in July 2025, DemandLevel in March 2026, and an optional time-of-use design called Shift and Save in January 2027. DemandLevel's start ultimately came with this fall's billing cycle; OUC did not say publicly why it arrived later than first scheduled.

The utility serves customers in Orlando and St. Cloud and parts of unincorporated Orange and Osceola counties, which is why its rate schedule lists slightly higher St. Cloud charges.

A separate fuel cut on the table

OUC also plans to propose a fuel rate decrease at its Dec. 15 board meeting. If approved, it would take effect in April 2027 and save customers about $5 a month, or roughly $3.3 million a month across all electric customers, according to the utility. OUC said a typical residential customer using 1,000 kilowatt-hours would then pay about $128.85, which it says is $7.62 below the average among its Florida peer utilities. OUC General Manager and CEO Clint Bullock also addressed the proposal, News 6 reported.

What's next

November bills are the first real test. Customers who land in Tier 2 or Tier 3 can check the My Usage dashboard to see when their peak occurred and adjust before the next cycle. OUC's board will take up the fuel rate cut on Dec. 15, and the final PeakSHIFT phase, the optional time-of-use plan, is expected next.