Democratize by bringing energy systems under public ownership.
Decarbonize: restructure energy systems to be ecologically sustainable.
Decommodify: Remove the profit motive from energy provision: no one should go without heat for lack of means to pay.
Decolonize: Repatriate indigenous land, reparations for damage done to communities, end military spending, and ensure new energy infrastructure does not replicate systems of injustice.
Understanding the energy sytem:
How do utilities derive their profit?
Utility Bill Components
- Base Rate
- Revenue Decoupling Mechanisms (RDM)
- Reconciling Mechanisms (Pass Through Costs)
Profit Structure
Revenue Requirement = Operating costs + Return on rate base
Rate Cases:
Municipal Contract Expiration: Once-in-a-generation chance to own our energy!
- Can be 20-30 years since last contract
- Once-in-a-generation chance to own our energy
- Negotiations started
Obstacle: many progressive laws do not challenge private ownership and in fact depend on it
- Make a member skill list – lots of lawyers, policy people and scientists in our networks
- Try to find some inside contacts
- Your expert partner may not endorse your goals
- Citizen’s Utility Board was very useful in Chicago
- Did not support municipal ownership of Com Ed
- Bought into regulatory framework
Expect to start doing your own education workshops
