What can the city do about rising bills?<\/p>\n
Most of the factors contributing to energy bill increases are out of the city\u2019s control, Van Nostrand said, but there are some things the city can do.<\/p>\n
Electric distribution rates, which utilities charge customers to deliver power to their homes, are approved at the state level by the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission<\/a>. The cost of supplying the electricity itself is shaped by broader economic forces and the markets run by regional grid operator PJM<\/a> Interconnection, which is regulated by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission<\/a>.<\/p>\n Van Nostrand recommended the city get involved when utilities ask the Public Utility Commission for approval to raise distribution rates.<\/p>\n \u201cWhile the proceedings are complex, \u2026 the city could have an impact in shaping the outcomes by thoughtfully weighing in,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n The city could have more control over residents\u2019 gas bills, said state Rep. Elizabeth Fiedler, D-Philadelphia, who chairs the House Energy Committee. The mayor and City Council appoint members of the Philadelphia Gas Commission, which approves PGW\u2019s annual budgets, and the city contracts with the nonprofit Philadelphia Facilities Management Corporation, which manages the utility\u2019s operations.<\/p>\n \u201cThat ownership gives the city unique responsibility and authority to protect our residents,\u201d Fiedler said. \u201cI urge the city to look at strengthening consumer protections to the best of your ability, improving billing practices and ensuring that shutoff policies prioritize health and safety.\u201d<\/p>\n Advocates asked council members to find ways to increase enrollment in the utilities\u2019 low-income assistance programs, including by making enrollment automatic for eligible customers.<\/p>\n Others pushed council members to strengthen energy efficiency standards for new buildings so they use less energy, and to invest more in existing programs that help residents produce their own electricity.<\/p>\n Patrick Houston, another member of the HERE 4 Climate Justice coalition, pointed to the Philadelphia Energy Authority\u2019s Built to Last home repair and energy efficiency program, which currently has a multiyear wait list<\/a>, and the Solarize Greater Philadelphia<\/a> program, which connects homeowners with vetted solar installers.<\/p>\n \u201cKeep on bolstering things that work,\u201d Houston said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"What can the city do about rising bills? Most of the factors contributing to energy bill increases are…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":792634,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5132],"tags":[5229,1448,2830,1311,10325,12771,67,586,132,5230,68,2969,59259],"class_list":{"0":"post-792633","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-philadelphia","8":"tag-america","9":"tag-pa","10":"tag-pennsylvania","11":"tag-philadelphia","12":"tag-philadelphia-city-council","13":"tag-planphilly","14":"tag-united-states","15":"tag-united-states-of-america","16":"tag-unitedstates","17":"tag-unitedstatesofamerica","18":"tag-us","19":"tag-usa","20":"tag-utility-bills"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/116565387907976566","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/792633","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=792633"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/792633\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/792634"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=792633"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=792633"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=792633"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}