Energy Companies Block Progress—Industry representatives have already opposed policies that would freeze rate hikes. Maryland PIRG is pushing the PSC to do more to protect consumers.

Beginning Jul. 1, the average BGE consumer will pay 72 percent more for electricity, and customers of PEPCO and Delmarva Power have already seen increases nearly as high.

The Public Service Commission created a plan to allow consumers to put off paying part of their bills, but did not reduce rates. Maryland PIRG is pushing the General Assembly and Gov. Ehrlich to address the underlying problems that caused the rate hike in the first place.

The backers of deregulation said it would bring more competition and lower rates, but the reality has been the exact opposite. Maryland PIRG fought against deregulation in 1999 for exactly the reasons we are seeing come true today.

“The PSC’s so-called Rate Stabilization Plan is really a rate increase plan,” said Johanna Neumann, advocate for Maryland PIRG. “They rubber-stamped the companies’ proposals when they should be aggressively auditing the whole industry.”

Maryland PIRG is the lead consumer group on this issue, educating other organizations, commenting in the media, and developing strategies for further action.

Maryland PIRG has filed suit against the Public Service Commission for not following the law in its response to the current crisis, and we have testified at hearings on deregulation.

More than 2,000 Maryland PIRG members signed a petition to legislative committees demanding solutions. Many Maryland PIRG members have also contacted their elected officials directly and attended a rally in Baltimore.