YOU LOVE TO SEE IT: States Depoliticize Utility Bills

Good things are happening! States are fighting back against utility companies using customer money to exert political influence, Oregon stalls the corporate takeover of health care providers, regulators are investigating private citizens using corporate jets for personal use, and the Biden administration will discharge more borrowers from debilitating student debt.

Curbing Utilities’ (Lobbying) Power

More than half a dozen states have filed legislative proposals this session to prohibit investor-owned utilities from using customer funds to support political activities. That list includes California, Arizona, Illinois, Maryland, Minnesota, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Utah, and Virginia. 

Utility companies typically charge customers for the cost of energy production and transmission to deliver power to their homes — but customers could also be footing the bill for company lobbying, settlements, and operational errors.