Marylanders from Bowie to Baltimore have experienced record high utility rates in past months, leading many to wonder what changes have caused this price surge. Maryland has closed coal plants in past years and 40% of Maryland’s energy is now imported, an amount expected to rise.
The emPOWER program has allowed families to make energy-efficient upgrades to their homes and nearly 55,000 households have used this program to make these upgrades on debt. This debt is now being repaid by consumers, and is expected to be repaid by 2032. The Public Service Commission (PSC) argues that for every dollar spent on this program, it generates $2.12 in benefits.
Delegates Adrian Boafo (D- District 23) and Marlon Amprey (D- District 40) called on the commission to pause utility rate hikes in a joint press conference, citing 150% or more bill increases particularly in the Baltimore metropolitan area.
House Speaker Adrienne Jones (D- District 10) has emphasized protecting consumers as part of her legislative agenda, and seeks to expedite clean energy development and bring a new power plant to Maryland.
Maryland has reduced emissions by 36% since 2005, the most of any state.
“We need to address these issues and protect everyday Marylanders and business owners across the state from unaffordable costs,” said Speaker A. Jones at an early February news conference outside the State House. “The three bills announced today will lower consumers’ utility bills, ensure the reliability of our energy grid, and create more predictability in our state’s regulatory environment as we move toward a more sustainable future.”
The Baltimore City Council passed a resolution in February calling on Baltimore Gas and Electric (BGE) to pause their proposed 2026 rate increases. Baltimore City Council President Zeke Cohen (D) has been vocal about the impact of rising utility rates on working families.
“We are not saying that BGE, or any other utility, should not repair where there are broken pipes,” said Cohen. “But what we heard in that meeting is that they are responding to their shareholders and not to the ratepayers.”
Blogger Robert Dyer has argued that Maryland should embrace nuclear power as a means to avert the energy crisis. A Baltimore-area nuclear plant recently announced $100 million in investment for upgrades.
“It also means expediting the construction of new nuclear plants across the state. One modestly-positive proposal on the table in Annapolis this session: adding nuclear to the list of ‘green’ power sources,” Dyer said.
“But we also need to move urgently on actually getting nuclear plants constructed,” Dyer continued. “There are several new players in the nuclear energy field, and new technology such as micro reactors.”