SAN ANTONIO -- A handful of protestors stood outside a meeting for a proposed rate hike, but not specifically for the increase itself.

The group protesting outside a public meeting was upset about CPS Energy considering using a portion of the proposed funds increase to construct a nuclear power plant.

They argued that CPS Energy should be considering using more clean energy sources such as wind or solar power to help meet its increasing demand for electricity.

"We've got a lot on our plate of what customers have asked us for," CPS Energy spokeswoman Theresa Brown-Cortez said. "We are doing things like energy efficiency and conservation, we're adding new things to our coal plants to make them cleaner (and) we need extra money to do these things."

One protestor said he isn't bothered with the rate increase, but he preferred it would go for other methods of power production.

CPS Energy's board will vote on the 5 percent rate increase on Monday and hope to take the issue before City Council for approval in April. If approved, the average bill would rise by about six dollars, according to CPS Energy officials. Less than 1 percent of the proposed rate increase would go to nuclear energy sources, Brown-Cortez said.