DES MOINES, IOWA (October 9, 2023) — Last week the Iowa Utilities Board hosted the second of three public input and discussion sessions, called charrettes, as part of a legislative-mandated review of how utilities set their rates.
These discussions and this ratemaking study began after legislators passed House File 617 this spring, which required the IUB to undertake this review with a focus on “ensuring safe, adequate, reliable, and affordable utility services provided at rates that are nondiscriminatory, just, reasonable, and based on the utility’s cost of providing service to its customers within Iowa.”
In Iowa, electric utilities are monopolies — the State of Iowa allows them to be the only provider in an area in exchange for careful regulation to make sure their operations are efficient and rates are fair. This requires transparent and thorough oversight to balance the financial interest of the company and the customers.
Yet Iowa is one of few states that does not require utilities to conduct Integrated Resource Planning, or IRPs, a common practice for other large utilities in the US. IRPs sound technical, but simply put, they're plans utilities should or must make that show how they will effectively and affordably meet the generation needs of their customers, rather than generating as much as they want (with old, polluting coal plants) to sell out of state and simply passing the costs on to you.
Every Iowan deserves fair, transparent rates whether you're serviced by Alliant Energy, MidAmerican Energy, an REC, or another provider. That's why we invite you to join us for our Flip the Switch webinar on 10/16, 11AM, or 10/24, 5:30PM, to learn more about the rate-making study and what you can do as a utility customer to call on legislators, regulators, and your utility to make your bills fair and transparent!
