About this episode

The episode discusses the rising electricity prices in the US and explores the factors driving these increases and potential solutions for consumers.

US residential electricity prices have risen by more than 40 per cent since the start of 2021, which is much faster than general inflation. Utilities requested a total of $31 billion in increased rates last year, double the amount in 2024. And investor-owned utilities are planning to spend $1.4 trillion on capital projects over the next five years – enough on one calculation, to build almost 2,000 Hoover Dams at today’s prices. So why are American electricity bills going up, and what can be done to provide some relief for hard-pressed consumers? In this episode, host Ed Crooks and regular contributor Dr Melissa Lott are joined by Charles Hua, founder and executive director of PowerLines, a nonprofit launched in 2024. Charles's focus is on US states’ Public Utilities Commissions: the roughly 200 commissioners across the country who oversee around $200 billion in annual spending and ultimately determine what consumers pay. He calls them the “US Supreme Court justices of energy”. The discussion opens with questions of consumers’ perceptions, and how they align with reality. The data show that in the past few years, electricity bills have been rising, on average, explaining why the…

People in this episode

Host: Ed Crooks

Guests: Dr Melissa Lott, Charles Hua

Topics covered

• electricity prices
• consumer perceptions
• Public Utilities Commissions
• energy costs
• political agenda
• utilities spending

Keywords

• electricity bills
• inflation
• utilities
• capital projects
• consumer interests
• energy costs
• Public Utilities Commissions

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: PowerLines, Ipsos

Places: United States

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