Utilities are the companies that own and maintain transmission and distribution infrastructure. In NYC, our electric utility is Consolidated Edison, or Con Ed.
Generation is where utilities produce the electricity this can be from nonrenewables such as Nuclear, Coal, Gas or renewables like Wind turbines, Solar and Hydroelectric.
The electricity is transformed to a lower-voltage which is safer for consumers and distributed to homes in a smaller local system to homes and businesses.
Con Ed is known in the finance world as a “dividend aristocrat” because they have increased their profits each of the last 46 years. Last year, they made over $1.3 billion in profits despite cutting off power to tens of thousands of New Yorkers in the middle of a heat wave.
The system continues to worsen and hurt consumers. Here are a few examples:
Con Ed won a raise to their fixed charges in their last rate case, after a year of record blackouts and shutoffs.
Con Ed made $1B in profits last year, and paid out $846M to shareholders. Their CEO, John McAvoy, makes $9.5M per year, or $4,142 per hour.
In Rochester and may other parts of the state, electric utilities have continued to send shut-off notices for nonpayment, despite the fact that we legally have a shut-off moratorium.
Blackouts this year hit 180,000 "customers" in New York City, a term which can refer to entire buildings - that's over half a million people without power.
One alternative to the broken system in place today is a public takeover of utilities. This approach would focus on the following four areas:
Decarbonize
We need to rapidly move away from dirty energy and towards renewable energy.
Decommodify
Energy is a basic human right, not a commodity to be sold for profit at the expense of the people.
Democratize
Everyday people need to have a say in the process. Community controlled energy is the only way to guarantee a just transition to renewables.
Decolonize
Recognize the sovereignty of indigenous peoples, with rights to free, prior, and informed consent. Demilitarize, welcome refugees, and decarbonize more quickly than the Global South, who have contributed the least to and will suffer the most from the climate crisis.
DSA is currently working on two bills in order to move to a publicly owned grid. These are,
Generation Bill
This bill would expand the New York Power Authority (NYPA) to build utility-scale renewable energy and have right of first refusal on renewable energy projects
Distribution Bill
This bill would mandate the takeover of the existing distribution utilities, mandating a 2 year process for redrawing utility maps according to basic standards of justice and equity