Free Republic

The “public interest” does not mean “special interest.” Regulators of Colorado’s public utilities corporations should learn the difference. The full mission of Colorado’s Public Utilities Commission is it “serves the public interest by effectively regulating utilities and facilities so that the people of Colorado receive safe, reliable, and reasonably priced services consistent with the economic, environmental and social values of our state.” That means serving the highest values of nearly 6 million diverse individuals with every imaginable set of priorities. It does not mean serving the highest values of wealthy climate change activists or the political party in power. The...

In conservatives' ongoing — and largely successful — work to gut woke ESG (environmental, social and governance) policies in order to protect investors' financial wellness, more than one dozen state attorneys general have put BlackRock on notice by challenging its ability to snap up stock in public utility companies. BlackRock's blanket authorization to buy large stakes in public utility companies — granted by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) — is worrisome given BlackRock's touted membership in Climate Action 100+ and Net Zero Asset Managers Initiative. The former means that BlackRock has pledged to "work with the companies in which...

The state of California is implementing full Marxism before our very eyes under the guise of “equity.” And so now there can be no possible doubt if there ever was for anyone: instituting Communism has been what “equity” initiatives have been about all along. Now three of its most powerful utility companies are saying that they’re going to charge based not on how much of their product was used, but on how much money the user makes. In simpler times, if you bought something, you paid for it. Rich or poor, tall or short, black or white, female or male,...

Michigan Senate Democrats on Wednesday announced a sweeping bill package that aims to put legal teeth behind efforts to wean Michigan off fossil fuels. The package, which Democratic leaders said would be filed by Thursday, would require state-regulated utilities to stop burning coal by 2030, and would require them to deliver 100 percent clean energy by 2035. Senate Democrats spokesperson Rosie Jones initially said Wednesday that would be a renewable energy requirement but later clarified the bill would require “carbon-free” energy. She did not specify whether that leaves the door open to utilities continuing to use fossil fuels while deploying...

The nation's largest grid operator is warning it may face a major coming shortfall in electric generating capacity as utilities retire more and more traditional fossil fuel power plants. It's a challenge facing grid operators across the country as power generators mothball coal and natural gas-fired plants for various reasons, such as reducing high maintenance and regulatory compliance costs or cutting greenhouse gas emissions. ... PJM Interconnection, which manages grid operations across 13 states and the District of Columbia, published new analysis Friday showing retirements outpacing new additions in the coming years that could leave its service area short of...

Over the past few months, we’ve asked Colorado Springs Utilities (CSU) questions about how they spend ratepayer dollars on advertising and sponsorships. Stay tuned for a future Springs Taxpayers United article about sponsorships. Right now, we’ll focus exclusively on the CSU advertising budget. We wondered why a monopoly utility needs to advertise at all. No one in their service area has a choice on which utility to use. The local advertising company Vladmir Jones handles the advertising account for CSU. Through a Colorado Open Records Act (CORA) request, we asked for all of the 2022 advertising expenditures. Vladmir Jones invoices...

Californians are expecting skyrocketing natural gas bills this month, but this can’t all be blamed on the weather, according to industry insiders. Southern California Gas Company (SoCalGas), which serves about 5.9 million households and businesses, warned customers to expect “shockingly high” January bills that could be 128 percent higher compared to December. Those who typically paid around $65 a month last winter are likely to pay about $160 this year, SoCalGas said in a statement Dec. 29. Those with bills around $130 a month could see charges jump to $315. Last December, wholesale natural gas prices already cost five times...

A new study shows that more than 30% of households in Michigan are going without necessities like food and medicine in order to pay the utility bills. Researchers at lendingtree.com looked at a survey from the U.S. Census Bureau. They found that just over 21% of household in Michigan were unable to pay at least part of one energy bill in the past 12 months. More than 20% of households kept their home at a temperature that felt unsafe or unhealthy due to the high cost of utilities. News 8 spoke with Lending Tree’s chief credit analyst about some of...

MADISON, Wis. — Utility bills for more than 150,000 customers in south-central Wisconsin are about to increase. Madison Gas and Electric is increasing rates by about 9% in January, which will result in customers paying about $8.20 more per month. The Public Service Commission of Wisconsin approved the price hike Thursday night while also approving MG&E’s request to purchase part of Alliant Energy’s West Riverside Energy Center natural gas plant in Beloit. The move toward clean energy also includes a solar and wind farm. However, the cost of those initiatives has been increased by pandemic- and supply chain-related issues. “This...

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) ‘correct’ data they don’t like, and ‘fail to archive the evidence’ — they are frauds in the eyes of many. Former top NOAA scientist, Dr. John Bates, led the agency’s climate data records program for ten years. Since his time at the agency, however, Bates has spoken of data tampering and serious malfeasance; specifically, he accuses NOAA of publishing a flawed report which supposedly disproved the pause observed in global warming between 1998 to 2012. Bates charges that study’s lead author, NOAA official Tom Karl, with using unverified data sets, ignoring mandatory agency...

Around 22,000 households in Colorado lost the ability to control their thermostats after the power company seized control of them during a heatwave. After temperatures soared past 90 degrees, residents were left confused when they tried to adjust their air conditioning and found locked controls displaying a message that said “energy emergency.” Xcel confirmed to local news station Denver7 that “22,000 customers who had signed up for the Colorado AC Rewards program were locked out of their smart thermostats for hours on Tuesday.” “I mean, it was 90 out, and it was right during the peak period,” Tony Talarico told...

Long-term CTH readers might remember in 2014 when President Obama claimed U.S. families had been paying too little for electricity for too long. As soon as Joe Biden took office, he began implementing the Green New Deal energy policy that, (a) directly forces higher costs for energy; and (b) is now creating massive problems. In July I noted my own electricity bill had jumped 28% in a single month. That bill was followed by another almost identical increase this month. A review of the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for July [Data Here] shows that nationally the same thing is happening....

At least 20 million households — or about 1 in 6 American homes — are behind on their power bills as soaring electricity prices spark what is said to be the worst-ever crisis in late utility payments.

The European Parliament on Wednesday voted not to block a proposed rule that would designate gas and nuclear power plants as “climate-friendly.” The rule will take effect unless 20 of the European Union’s (EU) 27 member states band together to stop it. The EU keeps a “taxonomy,” or rulebook, that designates which types of energy investment can be labeled “green.” The terminology is considered valuable for marketing purposes and to attract investors looking for climate-friendly projects. “Green” projects are also eligible for favorable government loans, and even outright government subsidies. The taxonomy is supposed to prevent “greenwashing,” loosely defined as...

U.S. power companies are facing supply crunches that may hamper their ability to keep the lights on as the nation heads into the heat of summer and the peak hurricane season. Extreme weather events such as storms, wildfires and drought are becoming more common in the United States. Consumer power use is expected to hit all-time highs this summer, which could strain electric grids at a time when federal agencies are warning the weather could pose reliability issues. Utilities are warning of supply constraints for equipment, which could hamper efforts to restore power during outages. They are also having a...

Today the U.S. Supreme Court issued a landmark decision in West Virginia vs. EPA, ruling that the Clean Air Act did not specifically authorize the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to regulate greenhouse gas emissions from power plants. Now, any greenhouse gas regulations would need specific authorization from Congress. At issue was the Clean Power Plan (CPP), an EPA regulation promulgated by the Obama administration which mandated that existing coal and natural gas power plants reduce their carbon dioxide emissions. There were many problems with this regulation, some of them were legal, and some of them were practical. Legally Speaking.. The...

Below is the text of a complaint we filed today with the Florida Public Service Commission: This electric utility contacted us a month ago and informed us that power usage in our residence had increased over the past 12 months (How--and Why? We are a couple in our 70's and have lived in this house for 38 years. Nothing has changed. If anything, we have been upgrading to more energy efficient appliances as needed!) At the time of the "notice", our bill under TECO's "averaging" program was a whopping $164.00 per month. If we were ever a day late in...

Dominion Energy Virginia, deliberately ignores the fact that the state’s zero emission law does not work. Utilities are doing this around the country. They will make a fortune building useless wind and solar generation before they finally admit it does not work and have to revive the abolished “power generated when needed.” The Virginia Clean Economy Act, which foolishly mandates zero emissions from electric power generation by 2045. Below is the executive summary of my analysis on Dominion’s VCEA compliance plan, building on the engineering realities I outlined previously. “Reliability means designing for the likely worst case. With conventional generation...

Jean-Pierre made the comment during the White House daily press briefing in response to Fox News White House correspondent Peter Doocy, who asked why the Biden administration is "now considering shutting down the Line 5 pipeline from Canada to Michigan" while oil and gas prices continue to skyrocket. "So, Peter, that is inaccurate," Jean-Pierre fired back. "That is not right. So any reporting indicating that some decision has been made, again, is not accurate." "What’s inaccurate?" Doocy asked. "The reporting about us wanting to shut down the Line 5," Jean-Pierre responded. "I didn’t say ‘wanting,’" Doocy said. "I said, is...

China’s Manufacturing Purchasing Manager Index (PMI) fell 0.4 percentage points in October to 49.2—any number below 50 represents a contraction in manufacturing production—according to official figures from the National Bureau of Statistics. The data was worse than expected with market analysts expecting a figure of 49.7. This is the second consecutive month the index has indicated a contraction, and is the lowest the index has been since the onset of the pandemic.Article by Edward Cheng from our premium news partners at The Epoch Times.Perhaps more worryingly, the data shows signs of stagflation—slow economic growth coupled with accelerating inflation. Driven by...