Tampa Electric bills for Lake Alfred residents are going up.
The utility announced this week that bills will rise by a little more than $2 a month due to an increase in the franchise fee by city government.
A franchise fee is collected from customers and paid directly to the city under a franchise agreement. A franchise agreement allows Tampa Electric to place equipment on city property, such as road rights of way. In a recent decision, the city raised the fee to 6 percent from the equivalent of 4.8 percent.
The fee will add $2.22 to the bill of a residential customer who uses 1,000 kilowatt-hours of energy. Customers who use more electricity will see a proportionately higher fee.
The higher fee will take effect Wednesday.
According to Tampa Electric, the utility makes no profit from franchise fees.