October 27, 2023 |
Photo – Rocky Mountain Power logo – Bigfoot99 file photo
In the wake of a massive, proposed rate hike of nearly 30% from Rocky Mountain Power, a Wyoming legislative panel has revised its efforts to protect ratepayers from rising electric utility costs as well as infrastructure investments that do not benefit Wyoming customers.
The Corporations, Elections and Political Subdivisions Committee scrapped some draft measures it debated during a special hearing in September and has added several others. The committee, which has moved quickly to address growing anger over rate hikes, is set to review seven draft bills regarding electric utilities when it meets today in Cheyenne.
A moratorium on new commercial wind and solar projects in the state, a measure proposed by committee member Sen. Charles Scott of Casper was removed from the agenda. Wyoming fossil fuel refiners, among others, said it would result in even higher electric rates. Instead, the committee will consider several efforts to test whether a utility’s power generation and grid infrastructure investments truly benefit Wyoming ratepayers.
Committee leadership has pointed to Rocky Mountain Power’s high-profile electric rate hike proposals — a combined 29.2% increase — to underscore the urgency of addressing rising utility costs. Though the case exemplifies the complexity of myriad factors such as the utility’s ongoing shift from fossil fuels to renewable energy sources, the legislative panel’s current work will have little bearing on the company’s existing proposal which remains under consideration by the Wyoming Public Service Commission.
