Maryland Public Service Commission authorizes BGE's proposed multi-year rate hike
BALTIMORE - The Maryland Public Service Commission, in a unanimous vote, has authorized a rate increase over three years of just under $408 million for Baltimore Gas and Electric Company's (BGE) proposed multi-year rate plan, inclusive of both gas and electric service.
This proposal would mean your rates are going up, which has been controversial among customers, the Baltimore City Council and the utility company.
In the first year of the multi-year plan, the Commission authorized the use of federal tax credits to partially offset the rate increases to customers in year one.
Last February, BGE applied for an increase of $602 million, which it said was necessary to cover continued investments in the electric and gas distribution systems in order to sustain safe and reliable service and to increase system resilience in the face of Maryland's increasing electrification goals," according to the Commission.
The application sought rate increases of more than $313 million for electricity and just over $289 million for gas to be implemented over a three-year period starting January 1, 2024.
BGE serves 1.3 million residential electric customers and 700,000 natural gas customers in Baltimore City and parts of 10 adjacent Maryland counties.
The approved rates, according to the Commission, will result in average year-one bill increases of $4.08 a month for residential electric customers and $10.43 per month for residential gas customers in 2024. Those average increases decline substantially in subsequent years, to 34 cents a month for electricity and $2.80 a month for gas in year three.
"We appreciate the Maryland Public Service Commission's thorough consideration in the 2024-2026 Multi-Year Plan order," BGE said in a statement. "We are reviewing the details of the order, which appears to represent a balanced and reasonable outcome that will provide many benefits to our customers and the State. Importantly, the order ensures that BGE can continue to provide safe, reliable, and affordable services to our customers, while laying the foundation for the grid of the future. We understand the importance of balancing the needs of energy affordability with the advancement of our grid infrastructure transformation. As we assess this order, we will continue to engage with the Commission and all of our stakeholders, including our customers, to ensure transparency and clarity in implementing BGE's second multi-year plan."
Baltimore City Councilman Zeke Cohen sponsored a resolution last July calling for the rejection of the utility company's three-year plan.
Cohen claimed these plans by BGE are unnecessary and costly to customers, while also arguing that the gas and electric company's plan would be bad for the environment.
"BGE is a public utility and it is a private company that has a monopoly on delivering gas and electric services," Cohen said.
BGE said that doing a multi-year rate hike to invest in aging infrastructure is a transparent process approved by the Maryland Public Service Commission back in 2019.
This story will be updated.
