
About this episode
The episode discusses Duke Energy's proposed power bill increase in North Carolina and the implications of a Republican majority on the Utilities Commission.
Duke Energy says it needs to increase your power bill, and the fate of that request will soon be decided by a commission that recently changed to a Republican majority. The N.C. Utilities Commission has been holding a series of public hearings about Duke Energy’s plan to increase residential rates by up to 18 percent over the next two years. Duke says the rate increase is needed to keep up with higher demand for electricity and the need for a more modern grid that can handle storms with fewer outages. To learn more about what’s happening at the Utilities Commission and the energy policy landscape more broadly, WUNC's Colin Campbell spoke with state Sen. Jay Chaudhuri, D-Wake, and Dan Crawford, senior director of public affairs for the N.C. League of Conservation Voters.
People in this episode
Host: Colin Campbell
Guest: Jay Chaudhuri
Topics covered
- energy policy
- rate increase
- public hearings
- Duke Energy
- utilities commission
- Republican majority
Keywords
- power bill
- Duke Energy
- N.C. Utilities Commission
- rate increase
- public hearings
- energy policy
- Republican majority
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Duke Energy, N.C. Utilities Commission, N.C. League of Conservation Voters
Places: North Carolina
More episodes of WUNC Politics
- NC's $100 billion transportation infrastructure challenge · June 5, 2026 · 29 min
- How state employees are reacting to long-delayed raises · May 22, 2026 · 31 min
- A youthful push for NC vape regulations · May 8, 2026 · 22 min
- The ad (and issue) that helped oust Sen. Phil Berger · April 24, 2026 · 31 min
- Why NC's prisons can't pay bills or keep staff · March 27, 2026 · 28 min
- Small-town accountant defeats a veteran swing-vote legislator · March 13, 2026 · 17 min
Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the WUNC Politics podcast page.