Evergy is proposing a rate increase for nearly 1 million Kansas customers. Say NO to Evergy’s dirty rate hikes.
Kansas’ largest utility monopoly, Evergy, is proposing a rate increase for nearly 1 million Kansas customers. The proposed rate increase would be one of the largest in the company’s history, hiking Kansas Central customers’ bills by more than $170 per year. Kansas City area Metro customers will see an additional $42 per year. Say NO to Evergy’s dirty rate hikes.
Say NO to Evergy’s dirty rate hikes! Kansas’ largest utility monopoly, Evergy, is proposing a rate increase for nearly 1 million Kansas customers. The proposed rate increase would be one of the largest in the company’s history, hiking Kansas Central customers’ bills by more than $170 per year. Kansas City area Metro customers will see an additional $42 per year.
Evergy asks for this enormous rate hike in order to keep its most expensive and polluting power plants running less than half the time. Evergy wants Kansas customers to pay more so it can pollute more, cause more respiratory harm and climate disruption, and use more water. Just to keep its old polluting plants online even longer.
Evergy burns Wyoming coal that emits about 12,000 hot air balloons of greenhouse gas pollution into our atmosphere every DAY and 10,000 tons of harmful toxins annually.
Greenhouse gas pollution is directly related to premature deaths and asthma attacks, especially in already-vulnerable populations. The electric sector is responsible for about a third of the U.S. greenhouse gas emissions that are causing the climate crisis.
Evergy wants to charge us even more in order to keep doing it, despite having cleaner and cheaper ways to provide electricity. That’s a lot of hot air.
Tell the Kansas Corporation Commission to say NO to Evergy’s dirty rate hikes and YES to clean rooftop solar and energy efficiency.
In 2022 Evergy asked the KCC Commissioners to allow them to expand their Missouri Energy Efficiency programs into Kansas. This would have made energy bills more affordable for many Kansans. But the KCC Staff thought the programs were too expensive, telling the commission not to allow Kansans to access these cost- and energy-saving programs.
The KCC has made no ruling on the Kansas Energy Efficiency Investment Act (KEEIA) docket 22-EKME-254-TAR since the reply documents were filed on 2/27/2023.
The Commission held three public hearings in July of this year to allow Evergy customers to learn about the proposed rates, ask questions, and make comments. Hearings were held in Topeka, Overland Park and Wichita. For those unable to attend, all of the hearings were recorded and may be viewed on the KCC’s YouTube channel.
How to Take Action:
Public Comments will be accepted through 5 PM Central, Sept. 29, 2023. Customers can:
- Comment using this link
- Send a letter to the KCC Office of Public Affairs and Consumer Protection, 1500 SW Arrowhead, Topeka, KS 66604-4027
- Or call 1-800-662-0027 or 785-271-3140.
For guidance on writing a letter to the KCC, review this letter-writing template or this Community Toolbox Writing Letters to Elected Officials guide.
You can also submit a video. For best results, record yourself on video using the camera on your phone, turned horizontally, and upload it using this link by Friday, September 22nd.
Your video will be automatically transcribed verbatim and submitted in printed form as your public comment to the KCC. We’ll use your video to encourage more Evergy customers to submit their own comments and ensure the voice of individual Kansas citizens and ratepayers is heard.
To take action in person, join Climate + Energy Project, Kansas Sierra Club, and Kansas Interfaith Action on Tuesday, September 12th in Lawrence, Kansas for a Climate Rally & Screening of the documentary, “Weathering The Future”.
Thank you for getting involved!
Email TakeAction@ClimateAndEnergy.
Submit comments by 5 PM, Sept. 29, 2023
