WASHINGTON – In a letter released today, U.S. Senator Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) joined Governor Dannel Malloy, U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), and state lawmakers to call on Connecticut Light and Power (CL&P) to not increase its service fee, arguing that the increase could ultimately deter Connecticut homeowners from investing in alternative energy in their homes. Currently, CL&P is planning to raise consumers’ flat service fees by nearly 60 percent, which places an increased financial burden on thousands of customers in Connecticut. Flat fees afford consumers no ability or incentive to proactively reduce their energy use, and ultimately, their energy bills, through home efficiency upgrades or rooftop solar installations.

“While CL&P may feel that raising the service fee by nearly 60 percent is just and warranted, your customers are largely unable to escape the impact of this huge increase. When electrical rates rise, it provides greater incentives for individuals to invest in energy-saving home upgrades or explore alternative energy sources like rooftop solar photovoltaics. Dramatically increasing fixed fees by $150 a year for your average customer, however, leaves them with little recourse.”

The text of the letter is below:

William P. Herdegen
Chief Operating Officer
Connecticut Light & Power
266 Pearl St
Hartford, CT 06103

Dear Mr. Herdegen,

I am writing you to express my opposition to the proposed dramatic increase in CL&P’s service fee for its customers. As you know, Connecticut’s electrical rates are already among the nation’s highest. As my colleagues Governor Malloy and Senator Blumenthal have made clear, a further service fee hike will disproportionately burden seniors and low-income households where energy use is already lower to begin with.

The purpose of this letter is to raise an additional specific concern regarding this rate increase. By charging an across the board cost increase regardless of the energy usage of customers, CL&P is creating an unnecessary disincentive for customers to invest in renewable energy or energy efficiency. While CL&P may feel that raising the service fee by nearly 60% is just and warranted, it provides your customers with little ability to reduce its impact. Normally, when electrical rates rise, it provides greater incentives for individuals to invest in energy-saving home upgrades or explore alternative energy sources like rooftop solar photovoltaics. Dramatically increasing fixed fees by $150 a year for your average customer, however, leaves them with little recourse. There has to be an equitable way to both maintain the grid’s infrastructure without penalizing consumers in this fashion.

As such, I would request that you withdraw your filing with the Public Utilities Regulatory Authority (PURA), and immediately consult with the Connecticut Clean Energy Finance and Investment Authority (CEFIA) to craft a new proposal that minimizes impacts on consumer incentives to invest in energy efficiency. CEFIA has led the fight to expand access to alternative energy in Connecticut, and can serve as valuable resource in reformulating your rate request in a fashion that holds harmless the greatest number of Connecticut consumers.

The potential for transformative energy investments in Connecticut is vast. While only 25 megawatts (MW) of rooftop solar are currently installed in our state, there’s the potential for 1 gigawatt (1000 MW) of installations across 150,000 homes – that’s 97.5% of suitable homes. Hitting already-burdened consumers with another fee hike will make it all that more difficult to convince consumers of the energy-saving benefits of such investments.

Thank you for your time and consideration.

Sincerely,

Christopher S. Murphy
U.S. Senator