Democratic PSC Majority Targets Bills After Utility Profits

ATLANTA, Ga. — Georgia’s new Democratic majority on the Public Service Commission is preparing to put power bills and data-center costs under sharper review just as Georgia Power’s parent company told investors its third-quarter profit hit $2 billion.

Beginning in January, Democrats will hold three of five seats on the panel that regulates Georgia Power, ending roughly three decades without a Democratic majority. Reelected Commissioner Peter Hubbard said an affordability docket — a set of hearings on why bills are high and how to cut them — is near the top of the list, along with closer looks at Georgia Power’s next generation and rate requests.

Shelia Edwards joins Hubbard and Alicia Johnson on the Democratic side after Tuesday’s midterms. Advocates who backed the slate say the board will be asked to keep existing customers from shouldering infrastructure built mainly for large computing campuses.

Chris Womack, chairman and CEO of the utility parent, said on Thursday’s earnings call that a hot Southeast summer helped drive record electricity sales and that data-center demand remains the growth engine. He argued rate freezes and customer benefits from that growth give the company a platform to work with the new commissioners on affordability.

Georgia Power has said data-center revenue creates downward pressure on residential rates — not automatic cuts, but offsets against what bills would otherwise be. Critics counter that past rate hikes tied to Plant Vogtle and gas plants still weigh on households, and that contracts for new computing loads need tighter scrutiny.

The parent company reported third-quarter profit of $2 billion, up from $1.7 billion a year earlier. Womack said data-center growth is up sharply year over year and is spreading into Alabama and Mississippi, while manufacturers and population growth add more load across the Southeast.

Any bill relief will take time. Emory University energy researcher Kristin Phillips said residents should not expect instant wallet changes, but can expect a different set of decisions as the new majority takes the gavel in January. Georgia Conservation Voters executive director Brionte McCorkle said the new board must deliver on high bills, data centers and climate concerns voters raised.

Filed under: Atlanta GA Business News