HARRISBURG, PA – June 23, 2026 – Senate Democratic Policy Committee Chairman Nick Miller (D-14) hosted a policy hearing examining solutions to lower consumers’ electricity bills with Senator Kane and Senator Malone. Experts provided testimony on strategies to achieve cost-saving solutions for Pennsylvania residential tax payers.
“Electricity should be affordable, reliable and accessible to every Pennsylvanian,” he said Senator Nick Miller. “Families, seniors and small businesses across the Commonwealth are facing mounting pressure from rising energy costs and they deserve action. Today’s hearing focused on identifying real solutions to increase energy supplies, modernize our infrastructure, improve efficiency and protect ratepayers. Pennsylvania has the resources and expertise to lead energy policy, and our goal must be simple: lower costs, increase reliability and put consumers first.”
“Pennsylvanians work hard for their money and deserve to know they are getting a fair deal when it comes to their electric bills,” he said Senator John Kane. “This hearing aims to find real, common-sense solutions to lower energy costs and protect consumers from unfair and exploitative practices. As lawmakers, it is our responsibility to make sure the rules work for people, not against them, and to ensure every Pennsylvanian is protected from deceptive business practices.”
“The reality is that PPL Electric, our region’s electricity supplier, has seen a consistently increasing profit margin since 2019,” he said Senator James Malone. “I think we need to ask hard questions about why they keep asking for rate increases when they have the opportunity to reinvest in their systems and free ratepayers. I was pleased to join today’s hearing with my colleagues to ask these questions and explore how we can lower electric bills for families in Lancaster and across Pennsylvania.”
Vice President Kim Barrow, Commissioner of the Pennsylvania PUC, provided testimony on the situation facing electric customers today and the drastic changes in the energy landscape with the influx of novel demand.
“Rising electricity bills are a nationwide problem, with the average price for residential customers increasing 10.2% in March to 18.8 cents/kWh from 17.1 cents/kWh a year earlier,” Barrow said. “Many factors are driving the delivery portion of the electricity bill: slow interconnection of new generation, the phase-out of baseload generation, increasing high-voltage transmission construction, and PJM’s last three power auctions, which have achieved 22% year-over-year growth over the past three years. Prices for this capacity have increased due to PJM’s data center demand, which is forecast to reach 32 GW by 2030.”
Alex Charlton, state RESA chair for government relations at Constellation, said additional steps need to be taken to ensure the commonwealth remains a leader in both consumer protection and market innovation.
“We know that a competitive energy market is not perfect, just as other markets for consumer goods and services are imperfect,” Charlton said. “Keeping bad actors out and inviting good actors in will help ensure that the retail marketplace can deliver adequate consumer protections, innovation, economic benefits and consumer value to Pennsylvanians.”
Darryl Lawrence of the Pennsylvania Office of Consumer Advocates emphasized that maintaining affordable electricity prices is crucial to consumer well-being. Lawrence recommended adopting fair rate-setting practices by requiring explicit consumer consent before customers switch to variable rates and implementing forceful safeguards to ensure hyperscale data centers do not raise costs or disrupt service for existing customers.
“To honor these commitments and policy choices and protect incumbent ratepayers from these costs and risks, Pennsylvania has statutory authority and responsibility requiring the Commission and EDC to act in a manner consistent with a framework of cooperative federalism and protecting reliable and affordable electricity service for incumbent ratepayers while meeting new, extraordinary demand for data center electricity,” Lawrence said.
Testimony at the hearing were:
- Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission
- Pennsylvania’s public utilities bill
- PA Energy Association
- Office of the Consumer Ombudsman
- Constellation
Senator Nick Miller was elected political chair of the Senate Democratic Caucus in December 2024.
Footage of the hearing and written testimony from the panel are available at: PASenatorMiller.com/Policy. Downloadable photos and videos are available upon request.
Learn more about AP Senate Democrats’ commitment to protecting our Commonwealth’s health care needs and other legislative priorities at www.pasenate.com.
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- Vice-President Kim BarrowCommissioner, Pennsylvania PUC
- Attorney Darryl LawrencePennsylvania Consumer Advocate
- Andrew TubbsCEO and president of the Energy Association of Pennsylvania (EAP)
- Elizabeth Marx, performerPA Public Utility Law Project Director
- Alex CharltonState Chairman, Government Relations, Constellation
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