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Bolinsky, CT House and Senate Republicans Offer Ideas to Provide Consumers Relief on Electric Bills

(Watch the press conference here: https://ct-n.com/ctnplayer.asp?odID=24133.)

HARTFORD- As Connecticut residents are opening their January electricity bills, State Rep. Mitch Bolinsky (R-106), together with his House and Senate Republican colleagues today unveiled a detailed six-point plan to bring about stability and relief for consumers.

Rep. Bolinsky said, “Our constituents have been demanding relief from the shock felt by every Eversource and UI ratepayer since the arrival of their bloated August 2024 electric bills, when they discovered the Public Benefits components of their bills had gone through the roof.  The high cost of electricity is punishing working Newtown families, folks on fixed incomes, our municipalities, and businesses.  This all happened behind closed doors, enacted by the state’s Public Utility Regulatory Authority, not by a vote of the full legislature, when federal pandemic relief dollars, intended to repay the utilities for revenues lost to a state mandated moratorium barring power companies from shutting off power to customers who were not paying their bills, were ‘repurposed’.  Federal ARPA dollars to cover the $400-million cost of Connecticut’s 4-year shut-off moratorium were appropriated elsewhere, as I’ve been reporting since the end of the 2024 session in May, when my colleagues and I were demanding, and petitioning for a special session to address the shuffle that would affect ratepayers.”

“It’s time for state government to be responsive and not continue to turn a deaf ear to the public and, my colleagues and I have a plan to ensure this doesn’t happen again.”

House Republican Leader Vincent Candelora said “It’s time for our state’s majority Democrat colleagues to acknowledge what utility ratepayers and analysts have made clear: their entire approach to energy policy, rooted in flawed priorities and misguided philosophy, has failed everyone.  This session is an opportunity to shift toward affordability, and unfortunately their recent news conference made it clear they’re out of ideas. We urge Democrats to adopt our proposals as the foundation for the action residents want and deserve.”

“People are hurting. Republicans are once again offering specific ideas to put consumers first and provide much-needed relief to Connecticut families,” Sen. Republican Leader Stephen Harding said.

The Republicans’ plan would:

1) remove Public Benefits Charges from electric bills

2) prohibit agreements that buy electricity at 150 % above the wholesale price

3) redefine “Class I renewable energy source” to include any electricity generated from a hydropower or nuclear power generating facility

4) separate PURA from DEEP

5) eliminate any incentive program that increases electric demand, including, any electric vehicle rebate program

6) study ways to increase the supply of natural gas