ATLANTA — The upcoming election for Georgia’s Public Service Commission could impact monthly power bills as voters decide between two Republican incumbents and their Democratic challengers.
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The election, which was delayed due to legal challenges, features two seats open for statewide voting. Early voting has already begun, with Election Day set for Nov. 4.
The candidates have differing views on how to manage Georgia’s future electricity needs amid growing demands from data centers.
“We have an excellent energy mix here in the state of Georgia,” said Republican Commissioner Fitz Johnson, emphasizing a diverse approach that includes nuclear, coal, natural gas, and renewables.
Democratic challenger Peter Hubbard advocates for a transition to clean energy, stating, “We need to make the transition to clean energy, which will help to lower power bills and help to clean up the air, land, and water, and importantly, the public health.”
Tim Echols, another Republican commissioner, argues that data centers will not cause an increase in base rates and warns against reducing utility profits to maintain reliability.
“I’d rather have people fuss at me about the bills than fuss at for California-style rolling brownouts,” he said.
Alicia Johnson, a Democratic challenger, calls for regulations on data centers and increased use of renewables. She suggests measures like requiring data centers to implement on-site resources for efficiency, such as battery storage and solar arrays.
“It’s a scare tactic. Again, the Public Service Commission’s primary job is to regulate utilities. And to balance that with consumer protections, and we’ve just not seen that,” Johnson said. “Putting some guardrails on data centers and their demand and on our current resources and so that looks like them having to be required some on-site resources for efficiency, like storage, battery storage, the use of renewables, maybe solar arrays or solar on the rooftops, so they’re returning credits, not just extracting them from our grid. “
As Georgians head to the polls, the outcome of the Public Service Commission election will shape the state’s energy policy and potentially affect power bills for years to come.
For more information on the statewide special election, click here.
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