Volts Pay attention to the most important political race of 2025
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Oct 8, 2025 Peter Hubbard, an energy analyst and Georgia Public Service Commission candidate, teams up with Brionté McCorkle, executive director at Georgia Conservation Voters. They dive into the importance of the PSC race as a national indicator, addressing the impact of rising utility bills on families. Hubbard critiques utility forecasts and discusses lessons from cost overruns at Vogtle, while both guests advocate for utility reforms. They highlight strategies for lowering rates, the need for better representation, and the importance of grassroots engagement to drive change.
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Vogtle Shows Regulators Failed Ratepayers
- The Vogtle nuclear project provided carbon-free capacity but exposed regulators' failure to protect ratepayers from massive cost overruns.
- Hubbard says risks should not fall primarily on ratepayers and shareholders should bear more loss, with federal backstops if needed.
Avoid Cosmetic Rate Freezes
- Reject simplistic election-year 'rate freezes' that lock in high ROE and leave fuel and recovery charges intact.
- Instead, pursue measures that lower structural costs and adjust return-on-equity to national norms.
Reduce Authorized Return On Equity
- Lower the utility's authorized return on equity toward the national average to free up immediate bill relief.
- Peter estimates reducing ROE from ~11.9% to ~9.5% could unlock roughly $700 million to lower rates.