Utah Regulators Issue Order Limiting Rocky Mountain Power Rate Hike

Salt Lake City, UT - On Friday, April 25, the Public Service Commission (PSC) issued an orderlimiting Rocky Mountain Power's proposed rate hike, rejecting the utility's attempt to raise power bills by more than 18%. Under the rates approved for 2025, single-family residential customers will see a 4.7% increase and multi-family residential customers will see a 3.77% increase. In its decision, the Commission called out the unfairness of making Utahns pay for wildfire-related costs and dividend payouts, making clear that ratepayers shouldn't be on the hook to protect the company's bottom line.

The utility initially sought a 30% increase in its application, citing increasing costs from wildfires, extreme weather, and volatile fossil fuel prices, but scaled back its request to an 18% increase after public scrutiny. Plans, later revealed in a separate docket, showed that Rocky Mountain Power still intended to raise rates by 30% or more. The utility would use multiple avenues to recover its costs - including the Energy Balancing Account (EBA), wildfire liability insurance premiums, and a Wildland Fire Protection Plan. All of these costs are driven by Rocky Mountain Power's reliance on fossil fuels, which is a majority of its energy mix in Utah. Rocky Mountain Power was empowered by last year's utility-enabling legislative session that passed S.B. 224, establishing a $1 billion dollar customer-funded cushion to shield the company from liability in the event it's found negligent for its climate change-related wildfire damages.

Utahns have been outspoken in their opposition to the rate case, with advocates organizing a People's Hearingin March. Throughout the public comment period, the PSC heard from community members sharing the impact the rate hike would have, especially for people on a fixed income.

But this reprieve doesn't change the bigger picture. Rocky Mountain Power's flawed 2025 Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) continues to prioritize coal and gas - doubling downon the very fossil fuels that threaten to saddle Utahns with rising costs and worsening climate impacts. Without a shifttoward cleaner, more affordable energy, Utah remains at risk - from increasing utility bills to threats against public health, jobs, and the Great Salt Lake.

"Like Utah legislators, RMP falsely claims an All-of-the-Above approach to energy resource planning," said Stan Holmes, Volunteer with Utah Needs Clean Energy (UNCE). "But as revealed by this rate hike request and the utility's 20-year plan, they've really embraced a More-of-the-Below approach to extract more fossil fuels from the ground and more money from Utahns' pockets."

"Utahns deserve an energy future that creates good jobs, strengthens our economy, and keeps power bills affordable," said Luis Miranda, Senior Campaign Organizer with the Sierra Club. "Rocky Mountain Power's outdated fossil fuel plan does the opposite. We're calling on the public to speak up and demand better. Submitting a comment on the integrated Resource Plan is one of the ways our voice can be heard."

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About the Sierra Club

The Sierra Club is America's largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with millions of members and supporters. In addition to protecting every person's right to get outdoors and access the healing power of nature, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.