ROUND UP: Americans Are Struggling to Pay Their Bills As Utility Companies Rake in $13 Billion in Profits
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Profits for utility companies were up nearly 20% since last year, with the top five earners raking in more than $75 million per day from April through June
Washington, DC — Utility companies raked in billions of dollars in profits in Q2, even as Americans face $100 billion in enacted and proposed utility rate hikes. Donald Trump’s order to keep expensive, aging coal plants open is threatening to send prices even higher, with some utility companies already seeking to raise rates as a result.
While utility companies laugh all the way to the bank, Trump and congressional Republicans are making the problem even worse with their reckless energy policies. Their own budget bill gutted clean energy projects across the country, squeezing supply as demand skyrockets and spiking utility bills. Thanks to the energy affordability crisis that Trump and Republicans in Congress created, Americans are struggling to make ends meet, even resorting to “buy now, pay later” loans just to keep the lights on.
Michigan
- The Lansing Board of Water and Light approved increasing the typical residential electric customer’s bill by an average of 2.1%, or roughly $2 per month.
North Carolina
- Dominion Energy sought approval from the North Carolina Utilities Commission to increase fuel costs by $25.73 a month by February 2027 for the average residential gas customer.
Wyoming
- Black Hills Energy submitted a $5.1 million annual rate increase that would increase the average monthly residential electric bill by $32.
Indiana
- The Crawfordsville City Council approved an ordinance to increase electric rates by about 3.5% annually over the following four years, resulting in an overall increase of about 13% by 2030, adding roughly $4 to the average monthly electric bill.
Oklahoma
- Summit Utilities Oklahoma filed a rate request with the Oklahoma Corporation Commission to approve a rate hike that would increase the average monthly residential gas bill by $2.59.