Pennsylvania Activists Urge Lawmakers to Help Curb Soaring Electric Bills
Key takeaways
- The group, including the Natural Resources Defense Council, Pennsylvania Utility Law Project, the Evergreen Collaborative and state Rep.
- Residential electricity rates in Pennsylvania rose almost 14 percent in the past year alone, according to federal data.
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Republish Power lines run along a neighborhood in Philadelphia. Credit: Matthew Hatcher/AFP via Getty Images Related Pennsylvania’s Governor Has a Plan to Make Data Centers Bring Their Own Energy. Now Comes the Hard Part. An Outpouring of Frustration Over Pennsylvania’s Rapid Data Center Growth As Tech Groups Predict Huge Pennsylvania Data-Center Growth, Critics Say Some Bills Would Reduce Local Control Share This Article Republish Most Popular New BLM Grazing Rules Eliminate Tribal Buffalo From Public Lands A Water Crisis Has The ‘Poster Boys’ of Iowa Farming Ready to Talk Regulation Dolphins, Sharks, Turtles and Workers Are All Victims of Unregulated Squid Fleets Advocates for lower electricity prices in Pennsylvania said Wednesday their goals can be achieved by requiring large-load users like data centers to supply their own power rather than taking it from the grid, by reducing utility profits and by speeding up the interconnection of new clean-energy projects.
The group, including the Natural Resources Defense Council, Pennsylvania Utility Law Project, the Evergreen Collaborative and state Rep. Elizabeth Fiedler, touted a report showing that consumers in the state could save an average of more than $840 a year on electricity costs by 2030 vs. the status quo if lawmakers enact policies that address the causes of soaring retail power prices.
The report, from Synapse Energy Economics, an environmental consulting firm based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, said the proposed policy reforms could reduce household electricity costs by an average of $197 in 2027 alone and deliver an estimated $2.4 billion in cost savings statewide by 2030.