WE’RE CALLING ON THE PSC TO DENY THE PROPOSED 20% RATE HIKE
NorthWestern Energy (NWE) is asking the Montana Public Service Commission (PSC) to approve a massive 20.2% electric rate increase for residential customers, forcing Montanans to cover the cost of an expensive gas plant the company decided to build in Laurel without looking into more affordable options —not out of their profits, but out of our pockets. The PSC will hold two weeks of hearings on this proposed increase (June 9-19) , with the opportunity to share public comment (in person or on zoom) each morning. The comment period will be 9-10 am. The rest will be 8-9 am. People can also submit written comments.
Why This Matters:
- Climate change is hitting home—in wildfires, more frequent, extreme weather events, and drought.
- Costs are rising across the board—energy, groceries, housing.
- NWE is a monopoly utility company. We can’t shop around for better options.
- Under our current energy system, NWE profits from building expensive gas and coal plants —even when it's not what Montanans want or need. We already pay the highest electric rates in the Northwest.
How to Get Involved:
Submit written comment using our comment form, or email pschelp@mt.gov and ask staff to submit your comment
Testify during public comment periods online or in person. For testifying online, you can email pschelp@mt.gov or call 1-800-646-6150 by 5pm the day before the public comment session you want to speak in to receive the Zoom link or call-in number. To testify in person, come to the Public Service Commission building in Helena (1701 Prospect Ave.). For help in preparing your comment, check out our talking points and comment worksheet.
Write a letter to the editor about the rate hike and the impacts you are experiencing or expect to experience. Check out our tips on writing LTEs and Op-Eds and where to send letters to a handful of news outlets across the state here.
Check out our compilation of ways to get involved and our rate case fact sheet for more information. Feel free to share this information with your networks, including working class people who’d be affected by bill increases, schools, and institutions and businesses who are seeing extreme cost increases to run their facilities. Contact june.mlsna@gmail.com for more information and support.
This week, we can show up to say: no more rate hikes for bad investments in dirty energy. We want an energy system that’s affordable, clean, fair, and works for everyday people—not just NWE shareholders. This is a big opportunity to interrupt a cycle of bad behavior, bad investments, and misinformation from the largest electricity provider (and largest source of greenhouse gases) in Montana. We’re asking the Public Service Commission: DENY the rate increase.
We’re asking each other: Show up, speak up, and share this story. We believe in a future where Montanans—not billionaires—decide what kind of world we live in. And that future starts now.