This article first appeared in Political Peach News 

Almost half a century ago, when I was a local news reporter for the Great Speckled Bird, we frequently wrote scathing news articles about Georgia Power and the Public Service Commission (PSC). Sadly, the story hasn’t changed much. The PSC still seems to be failing in two important aspects: first, by its policy choices, and second, by its failure to operate in a transparent and inclusive democratic manner.

The Georgia constitution tasks this little-known commission with regulating and overseeing pricing for most electric, natural gas, and landline telephone utilities in Georgia. It is a quasi-legislative, quasi-judicial agency of five Commissioners elected statewide for six-year terms, but each commissioner must reside in one of five districts. 

The obscure and highly technical work of the Public Service Commission is fundamentally resolving two related political questions: how profitable a utility should be and what rates each class of customers should pay to the utility.  Additionally, the PSC is charged with directing the energy mix (i.e., coal, natural gas, solar, etc.) we should have in Georgia. 

Historically, the PSC and the utilities, especially the behemoth Georgia Power and its parent, the Southern Company, have been in bed together. Instead of regulation, the PSC mostly regurgitates the utility companies’ wishes and desires, with Georgia Power mostly getting what it wants and taking money out of the pockets of hard-working Georgians at every opportunity. One of the reasons for the cozy relationship between the Public Service Commission and Georgia Power is that the utility and lobbyists give large donations and gifts to commissioners, sometimes called influence dollars. 

Last year, the PSC had two specific opportunities to set progressive energy policies and protect Georgia Power’s customers from excessive rate increases. The first opportunity was the PSC’s review of the Integrated Resource Plan or IRP. This is a roadmap for utilities to plan out energy needs over the next 5, 10, and 20 years. The PSC’s role is to ensure the utility plans are sound. 

The PSC could have used the IRP to require Georgia Power to move more aggressively toward cleaner energy. Neil Sardana, the senior organizer for the Georgia chapter of the Sierra Club, points out one missed opportunity. “…in the recent past, each year the IRP has included increases in the amount of solar. But [in this most recent] IRP, the amount of solar was not increased. I think this was the first year they went completely flat and just stuck with the same amount from the previous year. So it is discouraging that they’ve decided to slow down the rate of solar increases.”

Georgia student organizations submitted a letter to the PSC requesting a faster pace toward clean energy in the IRP. Specifically, they complained, “Climate change is an essential issue for our generation. If left unchecked, the effects of climate change will haunt us throughout our lives. While our current expansion of clean energy provides us hope, it needs to move faster in the face of climate change.”

The PSC later missed an opportunity to protect consumers by not insisting that Georgia Power adopt more clean energy policies and limiting Georgia Power profits during the fall rate case. In the December 2022 agreement between the PSC and Georgia Power, the company got most of what it was seeking. The average residential customer’s bill will increase by $3.60 this month and then jump an additional 4.5% in 2024 and another 4.5%  in 2025. The PSC knows there will be several other rate increases in the following few years yet seemingly failed to take this into account: “We expect increases based on fuel cost increases related to the price of gas spiking and rises when the two new Vogtle reactors come online. When you add all those together, we project rate will increase about 45% over the next three years,” says Sardana.  

While the Public Service Commission is weak-kneed on progressive energy policy, climate control, and protection of ratepayers, the PSC also erodes the democratic process in its structure and its actions. For example, it is extremely hard for the general public to participate meaningfully or even be heard in rate cases or the IRP process. 

“It is an arduous, complicated process for individuals or advocacy groups to be engaged in either of these processes. And then, the PSC uses the lack of intervention to indicate that the public doesn’t care or that they approve of the job they are doing. But this is a red herring and means nothing,” says Brionté McCorkle, executive director of Georgia Conservation Voters. 

Currently, Commissioners are elected statewide but must reside in one of five districts. Last August a federal judge ruled that this electoral requirement illegally diluted Black votes and was in violation of the Voting Rights Act. He put the 2022 PSC election on hold until the Legislature develops a new procedure for electing commissioners. Currently, the terms of the two incumbent commissioners, Tim Echols and Fitz Johnson, have expired, but the judge ordered them to remain in office until new elections can be held. 

The current commissioners don’t have a great track record regarding democracy protection. During this last state-wide redistricting after the 2020 census, the PSC districts were out of balance and needed to be redrawn. Chair Tricia Pridemore and District 2 Commissioner Tim Echols, who was up for reelection, were exposed for intentionally drawing his opponent out of the district during a redistricting process.

The state appealed the trial court ruling that paused the election, and a ruling from the 11th Circuit is expected soon. If the plaintiffs prevail, the Legislature will be required to change how PSC elections are held. But if the state prevails, the secretary of state is likely to order special elections quickly. As a result, several aspects of a potential race are unknown. Still, we know that two incumbents, Tim Echols and Fitz Johnson, will be running with the baggage of poor policy and opaque decisions while in office.  

McCorkle, who is also a Plaintiff in the lawsuit, summarizes, “We have a PSC rejecting individuals  [trying] to intervene and prevent or limit public comment.  We have a Public Service Commission that’s being sued for a lack of representation and a commission that gives Georgia Power basically everything they asked for.” 

From my days covering local news for the Bird until now, things haven’t changed very much. But advocates are learning how to show up and demand more. And, while the PSC still represents profits over people, we have this special opportunity right now to sound the alarm bells and create a more democratic process and elect people that will put actual SERVICE into the mission of the Public Service Commission. Georgians deserve to know that our elected Public Service Commissioners have our backs and will represent our interests over the wishes of the utility companies. 

Krista Brewer

Krista Brewer is a native Atlantan who has a professional background in writing, reporting and editing. For several decades she has closely followed Georgia politics, focusing on topics such as healthcare, voting and immigrant rights, and budget and environmental issues. She is active on Twitter and invites readers to follow her @KristaRBrewer.