NORWICH, Conn. — Members of Connecticut's U.S. House of Representatives delegation are adding their weight to a growing call for the Public Utilities Regulatory Authority to bring energy costs down.
The group sent a letter to PURA's commissioners in support of a recent request filed by the state's Energy and Technology Committee. The committee officially asked PURA to reconsider a rate increase they approved earlier this month, arguing that the increases in an abnormally hot summer has caused "rate shock" among customers.
“With four summer heat waves so far making the timing of these increases approved by PURA even worse, and with countless state residents struggling under staggering increases to their bills, now is the time to reconsider this rate increase,” said State Sen. Norm Needleman (D-Essex), chair of the Energy and Technology Committee, in a statement on Aug. 15. “There are ways to relieve the pressure on residents, including increasing the amount of time this increase is in place to reduce its monthly impact. Otherwise, our residents will continue to pay extreme costs that harm our state’s economies, families and livelihoods.”
The committee is citing a section of Connecticut state law that allows PURA to reverse or modify its decisions when requested, with a showing of "changed conditions."
Now, U.S. Representatives Joe Courtney (CT-02), John B. Larson (CT-01), Rosa DeLauro (CT-03), Jim Himes (CT-04), and Jahana Hayes (CT-05) are joining the call, even though technically they don't have any authority over PURA or the utilities.
“Although as federal Representatives we do not have any formal role in the process of setting rates or in the oversight of utility companies, we have all heard from numerous constituents and businesses that are experiencing significant increases in bills in the wake of the recently implemented Rate Adjustment,” wrote Connecticut's U.S. Representatives in their letter. “For this reason, we strongly support the motion to reconsider and believe that PURA should consider alternative strategies for meeting the state and utility providers’ statutory and financial obligations that do not unduly burden ratepayers, especially in the historically high-usage summer months.”
Connecticut ratepayers saw two increases in their bills this summer. The first, which went into effect on July 1, combined with higher temperatures, led to much higher-than-average electric bills for many in Connecticut. The second, which will go into effect on Sept. 1, will see another small increase in prices.
The utilities, meanwhile, are blaming lawmakers and the regulators themselves for the price hikes. Officials from both Eversource and United Illuminating claim that they informed regulators over a year ago that the current rates were not sufficient to cover costs.
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