(The Center Square) - More than 100 Puget Sound Energy ratepayers packed a four-hour public hearing in Lacey Tuesday night to urge members of the Utilities and Transportation Commission to reject PSE’s proposed rate hikes for electricity and natural gas.
PSE is asking for a 15% increase in electricity and 14% for natural gas next year. Rates would climb again in 2028 and 2029, adding hundreds of dollars a year to power bills.
In all, it amounts to $1.5 billion in rate increases over the next three years, which would cost a typical PSE electricity customer an additional $612 a year by 2029 and a typical gas customer $276 more a year.
The for-profit utility says the increase is needed to build more power plants as demand increases and as the state cleans up its power supply to comply with clean energy mandates passed by majority Democrats.
"The rate plan reflects the substantial capital investments PSE must make to continue delivering safe and reliable natural gas and electric service to customers, ensure sufficient capacity to meet growing energy demand, and continue making progress toward Washington state’s clean energy requirements," according to a PSE's website.
The utility further explained its reasons in an earlier release.
“Any increase in monthly bills is difficult for the families and businesses we serve. We take that seriously,” said Mary Kipp, president & CEO of Puget Sound Energy in a statement back in February when the utility announced the planned rate hikes.
“At the same time, our customers count on us for safe, reliable energy, and many expect that energy to become cleaner in line with Washington’s climate laws. This rate plan reflects the balance we must strike: keeping our gas and electric system strong and dependable, investing in cleaner resources that will power our future, and doing so as responsibly and thoughtfully as possible,” said Kipp.
Ratepayers lined up well before the meeting started Tuesday evening for a chance to urge commissioners not to allow PSE to raise rates so high.
“The owners of Puget Sound Energy are treating the utility company as if it was an annuity. And the investors want a guaranteed 10% rate of return on their so-called investment," said Edgewood resident Andrew Wiesenfeld who spoke during public comment.
"Now, everyone in this room would love to have an annuity with that kind of ROI. And even better, they would love to have someone else pay for it. That's exactly what PSE is seeking."
“They want the ratepayers to pay the cost of PSE’s guaranteed stream of income. This strikes me as some kind of weird Orwellian, perverse, corporate socialism. Where the costs are socialized across the ratepayer base and the gains are individualized to the investors,” said Wiesenfeld.
Mat Jackmond of Tumwater also testified in opposition to the PSE rate hikes.
“I've been a PSE customer for over 45 years, and over the last three years, I've seen nothing but very large rate increases by PSE that are not what I would consider appropriate,” said Jackmond.
He told the UTC his lowest PSE bill this year so far has been $403.50.
“Last year, my lowest bill was $329.36. The year before that, my lowest bill was $276. Over the last 12 months, the rate increase for my power has been 19.21% higher than it was the year before…..this is exorbitant from a power company.”
Jackmond referenced ties to PSE’s obligation to comply with the Climate Commitment Act and clean climate goals behind the rate hikes.
“But how are retired folks like myself and others supposed to deal with this on fixed incomes?”
In a Wednesday email to The Center Square, PSE conceded that meeting Washington state's clean energy requirements is one of the primary drivers behind recent rate increases.
“Since the Clean Energy Transformation Act (CETA) was passed in 2019, the cost of acquiring all of the power needed to serve customers has more than tripled, going from about $750 million per year to more than $2 billion per year,” wrote PSE Media Engagement Program Manager Gerald Tracy.
“In addition to those rising power costs, we estimate that complying with CETA has added approximately $820 million in costs—that figure does not include additional expenses needed [to] replace the energy we lost when coal was removed from our portfolio in compliance with state law. This is by far the biggest cause of higher costs for our customers.”
State Attorney General Nick Brown has also pushed back against the PSE rate hike proposal, arguing PSE should absorb more of its own costs instead of passing them on to customers.“In 2025, PSE paid $62.9 million in dividends to their shareholders. In 2024, it was an eye-popping $175.9 million in dividends. On average, 12% of customers’ electric bills and 11% of their gas bills go to paying investors rather than for services," Brown wrote in a July press release.“PSE also spends customer money on projects that are not related to providing services. The AG’s office argues that spending on these items should come out of the pot of money PSE uses to pay shareholder dividends, rather than money customers pay as part of their electric and gas rates.”UTC members will make the final decision on whether to approve the rate hike request. That decision is expected in January, the same month power bills would be hit with the first spike.A virtual public comment hearing is scheduled for Wednesday, October 7, 2026, at 6:00 p.m. via Zoom or phone (253-215-8782, Meeting ID: 822 1351 8474#, Passcode: 226995#).Comments can also be submitted by phone at 888-333-9882, by email at comments@utc.wa.gov, by mail to P.O. Box 47250, Olympia, WA 98504-7250, or through the UTC Online Comment Form.
