Washington state regulators let utilities pass pandemic costs on to customers

Today the Washington Utility and Transportation Commission unanimously approved utilities' request that they be able to roll many COVID-related expenses into the rates charged to Washington families, despite opposition from the Attorney General's office and every stakeholder who gave public comment before the meeting. None of the private utilities - which collectively paid out $446 million to investors and executives last year - provided evidence that they were experiencing financial hardship due to the pandemic, but this decision paves the way for them to cite the pandemic in order to charge customers higher rates. The exact impact to rates will be determined in later proceedings before the UTC.

Ruth Sawyer, organizer for the Sierra Club, issued the following statement:

“During a time of unprecedented economic dislocation that is disproportionately impacting Black, Indigenous and communities of color in Washington state, it’s disappointing to see state regulators pave the way for utilities to charge more for energy. Private utilities make hundreds of millions of dollars of profit every year - they can afford to get through the pandemic without jacking up rates on families and small businesses.” 

Even before this pandemic struck, an estimated 15 million people in this country - including a disproportionate number of Black, Indigenous and communities of color - had difficulty affording utility services. 1 in 5 US households report reducing or forgoing necessities such as food and medicine to pay an energy bill. Nationwide, utility bills are one of the top reasons that people take out predatory payday loans.  These energy burdens have only worsened during a pandemic that has had an outsized impact on the financial security and health of Black, Indigenous and communities of color.