Associated Press
BLUEFIELD —
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Virginia regulators were urged on Tuesday to carefully examine a proposed 12.5 percent base rate increase for Appalachian Power and the impact on customers in a part of the state hurt by high unemployment and higher-than-expected winter heating costs.
Only four lawmakers and two citizens testified at the public hearing before the State Corporation Commission to discuss Appalachian Power’s rate increase request. The commission had previously held two public hearings in southwest and southside Virginia and accepted public comment in writing.
Mary Martin, 58, of Martinsville, traveled to Richmond to speak on behalf of residents in her area, and told stories of some who said their electric bills ranged from $400 to $1,000.
“The citizens of our community can’t take any more of this,” Martin said after the hearing. “It’s heartbreaking. ... This affects everybody: the businesses, the churches, the schools.”
In response to complaints about escalating electric bills, lawmakers last month passed a bill suspending the interim rate increase that went into effect in December while regulators evaluate the request. The legislation put about $15 back in customers’ pockets each month.
“I have not seen an issue affect an entire region to the level of the intensity that this has,” said House Democratic leader Ward Armstrong of Henry County, who had introduced legislation to reform elements of Virginia’s regulatory authority that was defeated.
Sens. Roscoe Reynolds, D-Henry, and Phillip Puckett, D-Russell, and Del. Don Merricks, R-Pittsylvania, also spoke at the hearing.
The commission assured those in attendance that it is aware of the suffering that some customers are facing over their electric bills.
“We absolutely understand that rising electric rates are a hardship on all customers,” Commissioner Judith Jagdmann said at the beginning of the hearing. “Within the bounds of the law, we will do everything possible to make sure any rate increase that results from this case is consistent with carrying out the law and minimizes the impact on citizens as much as possible.”
The commission will hold an evidentiary hearing in the case on March 30 and is expected to rule on the increase by July 15.
On average, electricity rates in Virginia have increased about 35 percent between 2007 and 2009, according to figures from the General Assembly’s Commission on Electric Utility Regulation. The increases are comparable to national rates. Appalachian Power’s rates increased more than 50 percent during that time due to about $2 billion in environmental compliance costs.
Todd Burns, a spokesman for Appalachian Power, urged customers to contact the company to set up payment plans if they are having trouble paying their electric bills, but said that customers need to look at how managing their usage better.
“If you’ve got a $1,000 electric bill and you don’t have a back balance or other fees in there, you probably need to look at how you’re using your electricity,” Burns said. “That’s about ten times more than an average customer uses in an average month.”
Appalachian Power is a subsidiary of American Electric Power and provides electricity to 1 million customers in Virginia, West Virginia and Tennessee.
