SALT LAKE CITY — The Public Service Commission is deliberating whether to accept a settlement Rocky Mountain Power has offered in a series of cases centered around a massive rate hike.
On Friday, the commission held a hearing and took testimony under oath from Rocky Mountain Power executives, state officials and a community clean energy group. But Public Service Commission Chair Jerry Fenn did not signal when they would render a decision, only saying it would come as soon as possible.
The carefully-crafted settlement would get Rocky Mountain Power out of court and avoid further enraging Utah's Capitol Hill, which has threatened to break up the company after it originally proposed a 30% rate increase in 2024. The company said it was necessary because of rising infrastructure and fuel costs and wildfire liability risk. RMP dropped that to 18% after public pushback. After the Public Service Commission rejected the rate hike, RMP appealed to the Utah Supreme Court.
The settlement proposes a small rate increase, but the average residential consumer may not see it because of how the accounting works.
"An average residential customer will have rates go up by 4.2%. But the truth is, you might not notice that because we just barely got a reduction in rates of 10.5%," Michele Beck, the director of the Utah Office of Consumer Services, which acts as a watchdog, told FOX 13 News. "Depending on what time of the month you get your bills and, of course, now the weather’s hot and this is the months of the highest bills for residential customers, so I don’t know how much you’ll see that."
Rocky Mountain Power agrees to freeze any further rate hikes through 2028 and invest $2.2 billion in energy infrastructure in Utah.
"We believe the stipulation is in the public interest because it provides a balanced resolution of contested issues and like any negotiated settlement, it reflects a lot of compromise between the parties to reach the outcome," Joelle Steward, RMP's senior vice-president of regulation, told the commission on Friday.
The utility shopped around for Utah-centric wildfire liability insurance to help reduce costs, Steward testified. Technically, the settlement has already gone into effect. Pressed by Public Service Commissioners on whether RMP was investing in Utah's infrastructure as a result of the settlement or if it was planning to anyway, company executives said there would be specific spending.
"This settlement allows these investments to be secured and made here between now and December 31, 2028," said Joshua Jones, RMP's vice-president of business operations.
But Utah Clean Energy, which intervened in the rate case, suggested the Public Service Commission have oversight to ensure those investments are actually made.
"Our request is the commission direct the company to engage with stakeholders before the end of the year and share more details about how this infrastructure program will be utilized and invite meaningful input on priorities and parameters," said Dr. Logan Mitchell, a climate scientist with the nonprofit community group.
Rocky Mountain Power's proposed settlement has earned the blessing of Republican leaders on Capitol Hill. Governor Spencer Cox, who initially mocked the rate hike, said in a post on X that it ensured Utah's energy rates remained among the lowest in the nation.
"This proposed settlement helps preserve that advantage by providing rate certainty for families and businesses, strengthening accountability, and supporting the investments needed to keep our electric grid reliable," he wrote.
"I appreciate the collaboration that made this solution possible. This agreement helps protect Utah consumers while ensuring the dependable energy service our growing state relies on," Senate President J. Stuart Adams, R-Layton, said in a statement Friday. "Utah has long been committed to policies that keep energy affordable while maintaining a strong electric grid. Dependable, affordable energy is essential to Utah families, businesses and our continued economic success. We will continue working to keep energy affordable and strengthen Utah's energy future."
