State regulators said Thursday that they are accepting comments on Appalachian Power’s proposal to increase the average residential customer’s monthly bill by about $10.
The State Corporation Commission has scheduled a public hearing for 10 a.m. Sept. 9. Anyone who wants to comment by phone during the hearing must register by 5 p.m. Sept. 4.
There are three ways to register:
- complete a form for case PUR-2024-00024 on the SCC’s website,
- email a PDF of the form to SCCInfo@scc.virginia.gov, or
- call the SCC at 804-371-9141 between 8:15 a.m. and 5 p.m. weekdays and provide a name and phone number that the commission should call during the hearing.
Each person will get 5 minutes to speak. The hearing will be viewable on the SCC’s website.
The SCC also is accepting written comments through its website until Sept. 4. People submitting comments should select “Submit comments” for case PUR-2024-00024.
Comments can be sent via postal mail to: Clerk of the State Corporation Commission, c/o Document Control Center, P.O. Box 2118, Richmond VA 23218-2118. Comments should reference case PUR-2024-00024.
Appalachian Power says the rate increase for its approximately 540,000 customers in western Virginia is needed to increase its annual revenue by $95 million, or 5.1%. If approved, the increase would not take effect before January.
Virginia’s second-largest electric utility says it needs the money to cover the costs of restoring service after storms; increases in capital, material and labor costs; rising interest rates; and expenses associated with vegetation management to improve reliability for customers where tree-related outages are common.
When the utility announced its proposal in late March and outlined its reasons for the requested increase, Appalachian President and COO Aaron Walker said in a news release, “We recognize these are challenging financial times and no one wants to experience rising electric bills.”
When asked Thursday if Appalachian Power had newer comments to add, a spokesperson said the utility had summarized its key points in its earlier announcement.
Appalachian’s proposal is the first under a new state law that requires the utility to submit its rates for review by state regulators every two years instead of three.
An increase that took effect earlier this year raised the average residential bill by $16 and was the outcome of Appalachian’s last triennial review. The utility commonly cites using 1,000 kilowatt-hours per month as average.
An SCC report dated Nov. 1 said Appalachian’s typical monthly residential bill increased $91.01, or 136.63%, between July 1, 2007, and July 1, 2023.
State and local elected officials have criticized the electric utility’s latest proposal.
Earlier this month, six state senators and 10 state delegates from Central, Southside and Southwest Virginia wrote to the SCC expressing their concerns.
“[T]oo many of our constituents have to make difficult choices between food, medicine, and heating or cooling their home. While we recognize that certain unique conditions exist throughout Appalachian Power’s service territory and the cost of doing business continues to rise, we implore the SCC to consider the totality of the impact of recent and proposed increases on ratepayers,” the lawmakers wrote.
Some of the legislators followed up the next day with further comments via Facebook posts.
Del. Terry Kilgore, R-Scott County, said: “We are strongly encouraging Appalachian Power to find a way to manage and lower costs without additional rate increases.”
Del. Wren Williams, R-Patrick County, called the proposal “unacceptable.”
“Enough is enough,” said Del. Eric Phillips, R-Henry County, who called the electricity rate hikes “seemingly endless.”
The boards of supervisors in Buchanan, Grayson and Pulaski counties adopted resolutions opposing the rate increase proposal.
Grayson County’s resolution said Appalachian “needs to look at improvements to their operations, particularly fiscal management, rather than constantly seeking rate increases.”
The state attorney general’s office, the nonprofit Appalachian Voices and the Old Dominion Committee for Fair Utility Rates have indicated their intention to participate in the rate case as well, though they have yet to offer specific comments.