Alabama Power Won the Negotiations — HB 475 is Now a Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing

From Energy Alabama

Montgomery, AL — Energy Alabama cannot support the Senate substituted version of HB 475 and we are calling on the Legislature to reject it. We will not support a bill that hands Alabama Power unchecked power to overrule voters.

We have reviewed the substitute and we are calling it what it is: HB 475 in name only. The provisions that would have delivered real rate relief — mandatory and regular rate cases, and limits to Alabama Power’s profits — have been hollowed out. What remains are the parts of SB 360 that Alabama Power has wanted all along: the ability to overrule the people’s rightfully elected utility regulators.

The Energy Secretary provisions are still in this bill. That means a cabinet official answering only to the Governor, not elected by anyone, not accountable to ratepayers, will have effective control over the Public Service Commission’s agenda and personnel. The PSC is supposed to be an independent check on Alabama Power. This legislation turns it into a political subdivision of the executive branch.

That is not a technical concern or a political dispute. It is a structural change that Alabama Power can exploit for decades. A commission that can be managed by a gubernatorial appointee is not a commission that will stand up to Alabama Power.

Alabamians already defeated HB 392, which tried to strip voters of their right to elect PSC members. This bill accomplishes much of the same result through a back door, dressed up in the language of reform.

We urge the Legislature to reject this bill and go back to a version that delivers what Alabamians actually need: real rate oversight, accountable to the people, and free from executive branch interference.

Daniel Tait, Executive Director, Energy Alabama