Madison – Today State Senator Tim Carpenter (D-Milwaukee) called for structural reform of the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin. The PSC is currently composed of three members appointed by the governor to serve staggered terms.
“The PSC has shown that it is either unwilling or unable to protect residential customers in the face of rapacious and predatory demands of large public utility corporations. The PSC members are supposed to balance the public utilities’ desire for a regulated profit with what is fair for the customers. The failure of the PSC to provide such balance is simply unacceptable,” said Carpenter.
Senator Carpenter’s call for PSC reform follows the PSC’s decision last week to approve a 75% hike in the fixed part of customer’s residential utility bills. Additionally, the PSC approved measures to actually create a disincentive to use alternative energy sources.
“At the PSC’s public hearing on this increase, I called on the PSC to give more time to allow public input on this change. As Wisconsin is a net importer of energy, creating a structural incentive for our state to be dependent on limited types of energy may serve the utilities’ interests, but it puts our state’s energy consumer’ at a greater risk,” said Carpenter.
“The PSC ignored calls for more time for public input. The PSC gave into public utilities’ wish list to creating disincentives to use less energy and disincentives to encourage use of alternative energy sources,” said Carpenter.
“Enough is enough. I will be discussing with my legislative colleagues what structural changes can be made to the PSC in its membership or its scope of power in order to restore basic balance and fairness to the relationship between residential customers and public utilities,” said Carpenter.
