Environmental groups and Colorado residents gathered outside the state Capitol Wednesday to decry the burden of skyrocketing energy bills and ask state lawmakers to take action. At the rally, two lawmakers promised to introduce a bill aiming to address the rally attendees’ concerns.
In December, energy bills spiked in Colorado due to record-cold temperatures, high natural gas costs, and fees added to bills from Xcel Energy, Colorado’s primary electric utility.
In February, in response to higher energy costs, leadership in the Colorado Senate and House of Representatives formed a Joint Select Committee on Rising Utility Rates. Its purpose was to explore the causes of the bill surges and potential solutions the legislature could implement.
During several meetings over the past two months, the committee pushed representatives from Xcel and other energy companies for answers about how they set their rates and about the record-high profits and executive salaries reported by Xcel. The utility’s profit margin grew 9% last year, and the company reported a record $1.7 billion in profits, according to SEC filings. Xcel’s CEO earned $8.3 million over the last four months of 2021, according to the latest data publicly available.
Meanwhile, Coloradans’ gas bills increased by 75% last winter compared to winter 2021, while electric bills increased by 25%.
One of the speakers at Wednesday’s rally was Topazz McBride, an Aurora pastor deeply invested in her community. McBride serves as the committee chair for environmental justice for the Aurora NAACP chapter, the vice president of social justice for the Greater Metro Denver Ministerial Alliance, and works with the Restoration Christian Fellowship (RCF). RCF provides temporary shelter solutions, including pallet homes, for Aurora’s unhoused population and had their energy bill quadruple this winter compared to last year’s, according to McBride.
“I am representing the fact that there are many churches and other nonprofit organizations out there that are in critical positions because they cannot afford the high bills from Xcel Energy,” McBride said to the crowd. “Please consider that we have to live, we have to have good quality of life at every level. As non-profits, as residents, as businesses, we need to get these bills down.”
The rally had about 90 people in attendance including a table for Energy Outreach Colorado, an organization that provides resources for people struggling to afford high energy bills. They have a bill payment assistance program and a program to make it easier for people to install solar panels. The event was supported by local organizations 350 Colorado, COPIRG, Rocky Mountain NAACP, and Mountain Mamas Colorado.
Attendees responded to chants initiated by rally organizers:
“Why are we here?”
“High bills!”
“What do we want?”
“Action!”
“Should we invest in more gas?”
“No!”
“Is gas the solution?”
“No!”
Attendees also brought signs reading “No New Gas,” “Invest In Our Future [accompanied by a drawing of a wind turbine],” “Say No to Xcel, Go Solar!” and “We Can’t Afford Xcel’s Gas.”
Some at the rally brought copies of their Xcel bills from this past winter and wrote down their totals on a large sheet of paper on the Capitol steps.
After the rally speakers had finished, state Reps. Chris deGruy Kennedy (D-Lakewood) and Matthew Martinez (D-Monte Vista) spoke to the crowd. Both Kennedy and Martinez are members of the Rising Utility Rates Committee.
“I’ve heard a call for action and we’re here today to tell you that action is coming,” Kennedy told the crowd.
Kennedy and Martinez explained that they will be introducing a piece of legislation next week that is going to address some of the complaints issued at the rally.
“First of all, it’s going to take away some of those profit motives to be building out gas infrastructure that we do not need in Colorado,” Kennedy said. “Second of all, one of the things we saw last fall is that when the commodity markets fluctuated and we saw these high gas prices, the utilities just passed those on to consumers. They had no incentive whatsoever to look for more affordable or greener alternatives so they just passed on these natural gas costs. We’re going to make sure that the shareholders have some skin in the game during those commodity market fluctuations so these costs are not all born by the ratepayers. The third thing we’re going to do this session is to make sure the cost recovery utilities get for advertising, lobbying, and legal costs they incur while advocating for higher rates are not all born by the ratepayers.”
Kennedy and Martinez’s announcement was met with plenty of excitement and applause. After the rally, two of the attendees spoke with the Colorado Times Recorder about what it meant to hear their concerns being addressed at the state level.
Paul Culnan, a Boulder resident who describes himself as a “boots on the ground” environmental activist who keeps up to date with energy issues in Colorado criticized Xcel for the burden they put on the ratepayers as well as their lack of response to public outcry.
“I’m very much opposed to what Xcel is doing,” Culnan said. “They’re making very slow process, they’re dragging their feet, they’re making sure they get their profit. There are many things they could be doing but they’re not because there is no profit in it for them. The incentives are just perverse for utilities in this state.”
But Culnan explained he has hope for the future with Kennedy and Martinez’s announcement.
“The bill is new and exciting,” Culnan said. “Right now, the legislature has just handed everything over to the PUC and asked them to handle everything. The PUC has got to play nice with Xcel or Xcel will just bury them. For the legislature to change the rules is really good. We need more of that.”
Culnan also said he is an ardent supporter of Community Choice Energy (CCE), a proposal popular in California that would allow cities and counties to choose alternative electricity suppliers — still delivered by utilities like Xcel — to support a transition away from fossil fuels and towards renewable energy resources. Read a comprehensive breakdown of CCE here.
Braeden Miguel, who explained that he holds an interest in how environmental science intersects with business and entrepreneurial interests, also wanted to support the rally.
“I like to stay informed on how we can lead when it comes to policy and making changes for the average person and combatting some of the aspects of corporations that find it ok to pass on much of the costs to customers and everyday people rather than let it affect their profit margins or CEO salaries,” Miguel said. “When I heard there was a rally for ratepayer relief it got me excited to come out and support this movement and try to learn more as well.”
Miguel said he was excited to learn more about the not-yet-proposed bill once it is available for the public to review but wanted to highlight the collective organizing effort of Wednesday’s rally.
“This is an awesome and vibrant community fighting for these changes,” Miguel said. “The fact that we’re trying to do this for future generations and we’re bringing so many people together is inspiring to me personally.”
Xcel Energy did not respond to a request for comment. If a comment is provided this story will be updated to include it.
