Long Beach Utilities (Gas) Rate Selection Guide
Long Beach Utilities is the City of Long Beach's municipally owned natural gas distribution utility, serving roughly 56,720 gas customers across Long Beach and Signal Hill. The utility is modernizing with Sensus FlexNet AMI smart gas meters and a unified MyUtility customer portal, though formal third-party data access (Green Button, EDI, public API) is not yet available.
Long Beach Utilities (Gas) Rate Schedule Comparison
| Schedule | Type | Rate | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| Schedule 3 - Commercial & Industrial | commercial | Daily service charge + per-therm transmission + Core Commodity Charge ($0.3609/therm, June 2026) + $0.13/therm AB 32 | General commercial/industrial gas accounts |
| Schedule 4 - Large C&I | industrial | $11.5069/day service charge; tiered transmission $0.4012 to $0.1626/therm; Non-Core Commodity $0.3610/therm (June 2026) + $0.13/therm AB 32 | Large facilities over 250,000 therms/year |
| Schedule 9 - Transportation | industrial | Transportation/exchange charges per agreement; customer procures own gas | Large customers seeking commodity savings via self-supply |
Market Overview
Long Beach Utilities is a city-owned municipal gas distribution utility. Rates are set by the Long Beach City Council under Municipal Code Chapter 15.36, not the CPUC. There is no competitive retail gas supplier market for distribution customers, though large Schedule 4/7 customers may elect Schedule 9 to transport self-procured gas over the city's system.
Need to pull your actual usage data to compare rates? See the Long Beach Utilities (Gas) Data Access Guide →
Current Rate Schedules
Gas rates effective April 1, 2026 under Municipal Code Chapter 15.36. Each schedule combines a daily service charge per meter, a per-therm transmission charge, and a monthly per-therm cost-of-gas (commodity) charge that is a pass-through of the utility's weighted-average purchase cost. An AB 32 Cap-and-Trade charge of $0.13/therm also applies. The Non-Core Commodity Charge for June 2026 is $0.3610/therm and the Core Commodity Charge is $0.3609/therm.
Effective: April 1, 2026 · Full Tariff Book →
| Schedule | Type | Applicability | Structure | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Schedule 2 - Small Commercial & Industrial | commercial | Smaller commercial and industrial gas accounts below the Schedule 3 threshold. | Daily service charge per meter + per-therm transmission charge + Core Commodity Charge (per therm, monthly pass-through) + $0.13/therm AB 32 charge. Specific per-therm transmission rates in the Schedule 2 tariff PDF. | — |
| Schedule 3 - Commercial & Industrial | commercial | General commercial and industrial gas service. | Daily service charge per meter + per-therm transmission charge + Core Commodity Charge (per therm, monthly pass-through) + $0.13/therm AB 32 charge. Specific per-therm transmission rates in the Schedule 3 tariff PDF. | — |
| Schedule 4 - Large Commercial & Industrial | industrial | Commercial/industrial customers with annual consumption over 250,000 therms. | Daily service charge per meter $11.5069. Tiered transmission charge per therm: Tier I (0-20,833) $0.4012; Tier II (20,834-83,333) $0.2874; Tier III (83,334-166,667) $0.2146; Tier IV (over 166,667) $0.1626. Plus Non-Core Commodity Charge (per therm, monthly pass-through; $0.3610 for June 2026) and $0.13/therm AB 32 charge. | — |
| Schedule 5 - Compressed Natural Gas | commercial | Compressed natural gas (CNG) service. | Daily service charge per meter + per-therm charges + Core Commodity Charge. Specific rates in the Schedule 5 tariff PDF. | — |
| Schedule 7 - Electric Generation | industrial | Natural gas used for electric generation. | Daily service charge per meter + per-therm transmission charge + Non-Core Commodity Charge (per therm, monthly pass-through). Specific rates in the Schedule 7 tariff PDF. | — |
| Schedule 9 - Transportation or Exchange of Natural Gas | industrial | Customers (typically Schedule 4 eligible) who procure their own gas and use the city system for transportation only. | Transportation/exchange service charges per a written Transportation Service Agreement; customer supplies its own gas commodity. Specific rates in the Schedule 9 tariff PDF. | — |
Rate Recommendations by Use Case
Large industrial / high-volume gas facility
Facilities consuming over 250,000 therms/year should ensure they are billed on Schedule 4 to access the tiered transmission charge.
Schedule 4's marginal transmission charge falls from $0.4012/therm to $0.1626/therm as volume rises, materially lowering delivery cost for high-throughput sites.
- Consolidate load on a single meter to push more volume into the lower tiers
- Track tier breakpoints (20,833 / 83,333 / 166,667 therms) in usage planning
Large customer with gas procurement capability
Schedule 4-eligible customers should evaluate Schedule 9 transportation to self-procure gas.
Self-procurement can beat the utility's Non-Core Commodity Charge, which spiked to $0.8427/therm in January 2026.
- Compare market gas pricing against the utility's monthly Non-Core charge before switching
- Execute a written Transportation Service Agreement with the City
General commercial account
General commercial/industrial accounts below the large-customer threshold are billed under Schedule 3 (or Schedule 2 if smaller).
These schedules carry the Core Commodity Charge and per-therm transmission without large-customer tiering; efficiency and commodity timing are the main levers.
- Pursue gas efficiency rebates to cut therms
- Shift flexible load away from winter commodity peaks
Energy manager needing interval/billing data
Because there is no Green Button or API, set up the MyUtility Portal for PDF bills and request manual interval extracts for analytics.
Long Beach has no automated data feed; analytics workflows must rely on portal PDFs plus authorized manual extracts.
- Register all accounts in the MyUtility Portal
- Submit a signed authorization for consultants to receive bills/extracts
- Track the CustomerConnect interval rollout for future hourly data
Historical Rate Trends
The delivery (transmission) and service charges are set by the City Council and adjust periodically; the cost-of-gas commodity charge is recalculated monthly and is the most volatile component of the bill.
January 1, 2026
Non-Core Commodity Charge peaked at $0.8427/therm (Core $0.8324/therm) reflecting winter gas market spikes.
+476% vs May 2025 lowApril 1, 2026
Current gas rate schedules (delivery/service charges) effective; commodity charges eased to roughly $0.26/therm.
-69% vs Jan peakOverall trend: Monthly commodity charges have swung widely - the Non-Core Commodity Charge rose from $0.1461/therm in May 2025 to a peak of $0.8427/therm in January 2026 before easing to $0.3610/therm by June 2026.
Next expected change: Cost-of-gas commodity charges update monthly; the next tariff (delivery) schedule revision follows the current April 1, 2026 effective date.
Cost Optimization Strategies
Because Long Beach gas billing has no demand charge, C&I savings come from reducing therms, optimizing the Schedule 4 volume tiers, and managing the commodity pass-through.
Qualify for Schedule 4 tiered transmission
For: Large industrial/commercial sites
Large facilities over 250,000 therms/year benefit from the steeply declining tiered transmission charge (down to $0.1626/therm above 166,667 therms). Consolidating load on a single meter maximizes the volume reaching the lowest tiers.
Evaluate Schedule 9 self-procurement
For: Large C&I customers with procurement capability
Schedule 4-eligible customers may switch to Schedule 9, procuring their own gas commodity under a Transportation Service Agreement to capture savings versus the utility's Non-Core Commodity Charge.
Manage monthly commodity volatility
For: Customers with flexible thermal load
The cost-of-gas charge swings widely month to month ($0.15-$0.84/therm in 2025-26). Shifting flexible gas-intensive load away from winter peak months reduces exposure to the highest commodity charges.
Capture gas efficiency rebates
For: All customer classes
Use the Gas Utility Rebates and Direct Install Appliances programs to offset upgrades that lower therm consumption.
To implement these strategies, you need your 15-minute interval data. Learn how to download Long Beach Utilities (Gas) interval data →
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a C&I customer get interval (hourly) gas data from Long Beach Utilities?▾
Smart meters (Sensus FlexNet AMI) collect hourly consumption, but the customer-facing interval view (CustomerConnect within the MyUtility Portal) is still being deployed. Until it launches, C&I customers should request interval extracts directly from customer service at (562) 570-5700; there is no automated download or Green Button feed.
Does Long Beach Utilities support Green Button or a data API for third parties?▾
The utility itself offers no Green Button Download My Data or Connect My Data and no public API. Nectar provides API access to Long Beach Utilities billing data — see docs.nectarclimate.com. For direct utility access, a signed customer authorization letter is submitted to the utility, after which bills or manual extracts are provided (typically within 5-10 business days).
Which rate schedule applies to a large commercial or industrial gas account?▾
Schedule 4 (Large Commercial & Industrial) applies to accounts consuming over 250,000 therms annually. Schedule 3 covers general Commercial & Industrial and Schedule 2 covers Small Commercial & Industrial. Schedule 4 and 7 customers pay the Non-Core Commodity Charge; large customers may elect Schedule 9 transportation to procure their own gas.
How is the gas commodity cost charged, and can it be hedged?▾
The cost of gas is a monthly pass-through equal to the utility's weighted-average purchase cost, billed as the Core Commodity Charge (Schedules 1, 2, 3, 5) or Non-Core Commodity Charge (Schedules 4, 7) per therm. It varies monthly with the market - e.g., the Non-Core charge ranged from $0.1461/therm (May 2025) to $0.8427/therm (Jan 2026). Large customers can manage this by switching to Schedule 9 and procuring gas independently.
Are there demand charges on Long Beach gas service?▾
No. Long Beach gas tariffs use a fixed daily service charge per meter plus a per-therm transmission charge (tiered by volume on Schedule 4) and a per-therm commodity charge. There is no kW/kVA demand charge as on electric tariffs. Cost optimization focuses on managing therms consumed and the volume tiers.
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