CHELCO, or the Choctawhatchee Electric Cooperative, is raising its rates by 30 percent. It’s being done in stages, with part of the increase already showing up on new power bills. The remainder of the increase will be added in January and July. Big increases in fuel prices are being blamed for the hikes by CHELCO and other power companies.

These hikes come when more and more people are having their service disconnected for failure to pay. Gulf Power has seen an eight percent increase in disconnections this year.

The vice president of member services at CHELCO says it's a problem that probably won't go away anytime soon.

Aaron Bradshaw, VP of Member Services, said, "Actually, we have seen an increase in the number of people who need to disconnect service. Now our member credit folks work with them to make sure they get local agency help where appropriate and we encourage conservation. But ultimately, the cost increase on our end is driven by the cost of natural gas and the cost of coal."

Bradshaw also says CHELCO isn't making any profit on the hike in prices.