Group decries utility regulatorsÂ’ cap on rates

subscribe

Helping small businesses deal with higher electricity rates could come at the expense of larger businesses.

So says a group of commercial and industrial electric customers that challenged state utility regulators, who approved a cap on rates for 17,000 Maryland businesses May 29.

The Maryland Public Service Commission is requiring many of the state's small commercial customers to transition to a new utility rate by June. That transition, combined with rising energy costs, could levy a 40 percent increase in electric rates on businesses in service areas for Baltimore Gas & Electric, Delmarva Power & Light Co., and Allegheny Power.

The PSC is capping the increase at 15 percent for the companies from June to August. To help fund the rate cap, the PSC will require all commercial and industrial electric customers to pay an increase in distribution rates, a roughly 1 percent to 3 percent increase in their overall electric bills, during that time.

Related News

extreme weather affects grid

Longer, more frequent outages afflict the U.S. power grid as states fail to prepare for climate change

WASHINGTON - Every time a storm lashes the Carolina coast, the power lines on Tonye Gray’s street go down, cutting her lights and air conditioning. After Hurricane Florence in 2018, Gray went three days with no way to refrigerate medicine for her multiple sclerosis or pump the floodwater out of her basement.

What you need to know about the U.N. climate summit — and why it matters
“Florence was hell,” said Gray, 61, a marketing account manager and Wilmington native who finds herself increasingly frustrated by the city’s vulnerability.

“We’ve had storms long enough in Wilmington and this particular area that all…

READ MORE
octopus-energy-makes-inroads-into-u-renewables

Octopus Energy Makes Inroads into US Renewables

READ MORE

texas power lines

Air Conditioning Related Power Usage Set To Create Power Shortages In Many States

READ MORE

site c

B.C. Hydro doing good job managing billions in capital assets, says auditor

READ MORE

us electricity generation graph 2021

Annual U.S. coal-fired electricity generation will increase for the first time since 2014

READ MORE