HARRISONBURG, Va. (WHSV) – Concerns over rising energy bills are growing across the commonwealth, including in the Shenandoah Valley.
Dozens of residents have reached out to WHSV sharing how their electric bills have skyrocketed in recent months, and local energy providers and state officials are working to address those concerns.
Dominion Energy, SVEC bills spike for customers
Residents in the Shenandoah Valley continue to struggle to pay their energy bills after they say their Dominion Energy bills have increased tremendously, leaving their pockets nearly empty.
“I went from $175 a few months ago to $664,” Marissa Hodges, a Dominion Energy customer from Fishersville, said.
Hodges said she wishes Dominion and state leaders would continue to realize how much this is affecting people.
“I don’t have a super high salary to continue to maintain these super high bills, and I think that they’re just forgetting that everyday people can’t continue to afford these increases,” she said.
Charles Leach, a Dominion Energy customer in Stuarts Draft, said he and his wife recently moved to Virginia and that he’s never seen anything like this.
“Within the year, I’ve seen a pretty good increase, when you’re going from anywhere from $90 a month up to $250 obviously, you know, we’re talking electric, the heat and stuff like that,” Leach said, “but I haven’t paid that high here the whole time I’ve been in Virginia.”
But Dominion Energy customers are not the only ones seeing high prices. Shenandoah Valley Electric Cooperative customers like Priscilla Beach said they’re stuck in the same boat.
“When you’re paying high electric bills, such as our electric bill right now is almost $700, you do not even know where to start when your electric is $673 and your rent is $1,600. I mean, how do you choose what to pay and not to pay?” Beach, who lives in McGaheysville, said.
Beach said the cost is so bad that, like many others, she’s having to make difficult decisions while weighing her expenses.
“When you jump from 158% from last year, there is something wrong, and SVEC needs to figure it out, because right now we’re having to make hard decisions. We can’t go anywhere we would like to go,” Beach said. “I have a son graduating in May. I’m not going to be able to do things that I would like to, and that’s a pretty important milestone. … You feel like you’re strapped … you can’t even pay for the needs.”
Preston Knight, SVEC communication manager, said the cooperative understands that members have seen above-average electric bills amid the sustained cold temperatures across the area. In a statement to WHSV, Knight noted how “there is a direct correlation between extreme temperatures and higher electric bills” seen during cold winters and hot summers, as systems must work harder to maintain temperatures inside, consuming more electricity.
“Co-op members notice the increased consumption in their bills received after the fact. We know there can sometimes be a moment of ‘sticker shock’ but, in this winter’s case, please know SVEC has not charged more for electricity,” Knight said in his statement.
“Periodically, every electric utility must evaluate its cost of service and determine whether changes to its rates are necessary to maintain the investment in its system,” Knight continued. “As a regulated utility in Virginia, SVEC must file with and receive approval from the State Corporation Commission before administering new rates. That process provides for public input.”
Knight noted how SVEC is not-for-profit, meaning the cooperative relies on member payments to run operations, not investors. He added that member service representatives are available to help members navigate their electric consumption and potential resources for financial assistance.
“This has no doubt been a bitterly cold winter. We have been fortunate to avoid major power disruptions from storm-related activity, but in keeping the lights on for our members, there are costs associated with their continued consumption,” Knight said. “No two situations are likely to be identical, but we will provide the best member service we can to address each one.”
Knight said that members having difficulty paying for or understanding their bill should contact SVEC during regular business hours at 1-800-234-7832.
Virginia lawmakers respond to rise in energy bills
Many residents of Staunton and Augusta County residents have reached out to WHSV with reports of increased electric bills.
Del. Ellen McLaughlin, R, represents the 36th district, which includes part of Augusta County and the cities of Staunton and Waynesboro. In a statement, McLaughlin said her office has received multiple inquiries about the costly bills.
McLaughlin’s office has been working to respond to each inquiry and refer cases to Dominion Energy for review, she said, adding that Dominion representatives told her “they are happy to look into the cases we have been sending.”
“As a customer myself, I certainly understand the frustrations these constituents are facing,” McLaughlin said in a statement. “I would encourage anyone who has questions or concerns to reach out to my office and we would be happy to assist you with resources that may be available.”
Del. Chris Runion, R, represents the 35th district, which includes parts of Augusta and Rockingham Counties, among others. In a statement, Runion cited the extreme weather and “energy production restrictions and increased costs fostered by the Virginia Clean Energy Act” as having “burdened consumers significantly.”
“My office has been in direct contact with Shenandoah Valley Electric Cooperative, BARC Electric Cooperative and Dominion Energy, and each company has provided detailed information about programs available to assist consumers who may be experiencing difficulty paying their bills,” Runion added.
HARRISONBURG, Va. (WHSV) – Concerns over rising energy bills are growing across the commonwealth, including in the Shenandoah Valley.Q&A with the State Corporation Commission
Virginia’s State Corporation Commission is a state agency that regulates public utilities, among other responsibilities. WHSV spoke with Greg Weatherford, director of information resources at the SCC, to discuss the higher costs of energy that electric customers are seeing.
What factors could be currently playing into some of these higher bills that people are experiencing right now?
“Well, there’s a lot of different potential factors going on, so every bill is going to be a little bit different. But first, let me say that we are very aware that people are getting hit with some pretty significant bill increases,” Weatherford said. “I mean, everybody at the SCC also is a Virginian, and I can speak for myself, my bill was up quite a bit last month. So, there are a number of different factors, but the biggest one seems to be simply the fact that it’s a lot colder and people are using a lot more energy than they were a month ago, a month before.”
How does the SCC review and approve rate adjustments for Dominion energy?
“The commission is a regulatory agency, It’s an independent agency, so it’s not part of any other part of the Virginia state government, and so its role in this area is to kind of review the evidence for each decision that utility wants to make. In this case, say Dominion wants to change its rates or it wants to build a transmission line. The commission will hear all of the evidence in a court proceeding and then evaluate that evidence in accordance with the law,” Weatherford said.
“If the evidence aligns with the law, then the commission will make a decision based on that. So it is really bound by the law, set by the General Assembly, to review the evidence that’s presented by all the different cases.”
Is the SCC able to ensure that Dominion rates are fair and justified? Do you play a role in that in any way or form?
“Yes. … For example, in this case, if a proposed rate is considered fair and reasonable under the law, then it will be, to somewhat degree, approved. Now that’s not to say that everything that Dominion asked for or that any other utility asked for is approved. Just very recently, a couple of months ago, Dominion requested a rate increase that was much more than the commission thought was based on the evidence. So it reduced the amount by a total of, I believe, $390 million over two years. So the commission has authority, but it must follow the law.”
Have you recently approved any rate increases or cost adjustments that are contributing to some of these higher bills?
“The most recent case that people might have heard of is called the biennial review, and that would increase people’s rates by about $11 for what’s called the average user. … The average user, by our standards, is about 1,000 kilowatt hours, and if they use that much, then the rate will go up about $11.
“In my case, for example, I used 3,000 [kilowatt hours] last month, so mine went up $30 just based on that. Now, there are other factors as well, and that’s, I think, part of what’s shocking people a little bit.”
And so at what point does the SCC step in? If energy costs become unaffordable for a large number of customers, what would that look like?
“Well, if they meet the law and the standards, then we have to follow the law, so the goal would be to make sure that it is fair and justified and reasonable. The commission is not in the position to simply overrule the law. So if the law says that an adjustment is fair and reasonable, then the commission is bound by that law.”
Is there possibly any other reason why there’s been an increase in bills that’s not weather related?
“It’s a combination of things. The weather increases certainly made it much more significant, but these other bill increases are part of the regulatory process, and if the utilities present evidence that says, ‘We need a little more money for this or that,’ and it meets the law, then the authority under the commission will ask to approve it, as long as they meet regulatory rules. But by far, the biggest part of that increase is simply the weather.”
“The commission takes it very seriously how much this affects people’s pocketbooks and how much this affects people’s budgets. We’re very, very aware of that.”
Would you say that long-term rates and infrastructure costs like data centers are playing any type of role?
“That’s the effect of large users that is a little unclear at the moment, but we do hear a lot from the utilities that they’re getting requests for tremendous amounts of power, and very recently, the commission has put in new rate class rules that would affect just these very large users to make sure that they don’t hit regular users.”
“The commission has put in place rules just very recently to make sure that it does not strike them when these really large rate users really come online as they’re expected to.”
What is your message to customers and to our viewers who feel that they’re paying more but don’t feel they have any control or any protection?
“They can certainly relay those concerns to us in the commission. We take them very seriously. They should also feel free to put in comments in any particular rate cases, for example, different reviews. There are a number of them every year. … We always want to hear from consumers about what matters to them, and we take all of those comments and concerns [and they] are considered part of the evidence, and they are considered very seriously.”
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