The OPC highlights that since 2019, Pepco and WGL costs have risen significantly, hurting the financial futures and freedoms of DC residents. In fact, utility bills have become so unaffordable, the OPC states that DC utility debt has risen to "unprecedented levels." Many of these costs can be attributed to nonstop rate hikes, approved by Chairman Thompson and Commissioner Trabue.

This temporary interconnection program is a financial boon to many of DC’s independent solar customers and DC’s Solar for All program. This framework also serves as a trial run for interconnection reform, which is in desperate need of timeline and cost transparency and an efficiency overhaul.

Households continue to feel the squeeze from high Pepco bills, even after the cost of summer electricity has sloped down.

After getting caught overcharging solar customers, Pepco was forced to pay an audit to determine how much money they owed customers. That audit, which cost over $360k, was determined useless from Pepco’s meddling and poor data. Now, the utility wants to bill ratepayers for the cost, saddling DC residents with a bill from Pepco’s own illegal activity.

In its brief to the Court, the OPC purports that Chairman Thompson and Commissioner Trabue of the PSC ignored legal precedent, avoided evidentiary hearings, and are arguing around procedures of the case rather than actual facts.

ROE is the percentage added to our bills to reward for shareholders for investment, namely into Pepco’s infrastructure like powerlines and substations. We also pay for that cost as ratepayers. A 9.5% ROE is vastly more expensive than the public power model, which uses bonds around 4%.

The final tail of Pepco’s $123 million rate increase is scheduled to go into effect January 2026. Meanwhile, DC residents continue to be squeezed by sky-high energy costs and economic downturns hitting the entire DMV region.

After near nonstop rate increases totaling hundreds of millions of dollars coming out of DC residents’ pockets, We Power DC’s white paper showcases the high priority to finally break with Pepco and establish a city-run electric utility.

The cost of electricity is up 93.2% in the nation’s capital, according to reporting from Inside Climate News. Not only has this expense nearly doubled, DC outpaced all other states in increasing energy costs.

Pepco brought in close to $49 million in revenue from DC residents alone, not including business and commercial customers. While the utility boosted its revenue compared to last year, it also kept over half of all low-income residents (58%) in utility debt while sending out over 12,000 disconnection notices to homes behind on their bills.

Pepco willingly admits to having regular ex-parte communications with PSC technical staff, aimed at benefitting the utility and its shareholders. These are direct conversations outside formal channels with DC staff that influence how Pepco is regulated, which some would consider off-the-books lobbying.

In July, Pepco’s revenue jumped over $20 million. Meanwhile, disconnection notices spiked, and residents still struggled with chronic utility debt.

The OPC files its brief defending its appeal regarding the Pepco rate hike.

The OPC originally filed an appeal in DC court stating that Pepco’s rate hike (and the PSC’s approval) was unreasonable and unjust.

In June, when the heat and humidity pushed the index to the 105° range, Pepco was busy sending nearly 14,000 disconnection notices to struggling residents.

The higher percentage for CY 2024 results in higher revenues for Pepco which skews the numbers and undermines the accuracy of the reconciliation and prudency review.

Linking directly to Pepco, PJM controls and maintains thousands of miles of transmission lines, helps set wholesale energy prices, and handles interconnections to new energy sources such as power plants, large solar farms, and other projects.

In May, Pepco sent out 17,357 disconnection notices to residents while collecting $27,622,077 in a single month. The rising heat hit residents (and their bills hard): a total of 1,545 residences were shut off from power by Pepco.

As temperatures threaten to reach 110°F, Pepco suggests increasing the heat in your house to save money on the electric bills it hiked.

Pepco spent 29 percent less ($53.0 million) than its budget in 2021 and 13 percent less ($41.3 million) in 2022. That’s over $94 million in rates charged that were not needed for Pepco’s stated projects. DC residents paid it anyway.