Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility House passes Rabb bill to end secret votes that may hike consumers’ electric bills

House passes Rabb bill to end secret votes that may hike consumers’ electric bills

Legislation requiring utility companies who are members of power grid operator PJM to disclose all recorded votes advances to Senate

HARRISBURG, July 1 – Legislation providing new transparency for how utility companies vote as members of the 13-state power grid operator that includes Pennsylvania, passed the Pennsylvania House of Representatives today by a vote of 159-43, announced the bill’s author state Rep. Chris Rabb.

“Utility companies operating in our regional power grid that determine the electric bills, environmental and public health of 65 million people should never be allowed to vote in secret,” said Rabb, D-Phila. “Such decisions must be publicly disclosed. End of story.”

Rabb said his bill would require any electric utility provider that is a member of PJM, the regional transmission organization responsible for coordinating Pennsylvania’s electricity flow from generators to local utility providers, to disclose to the Public Utility Commission any recorded vote they make and to provide a brief explanation of how that vote is in the public interest.

House Bill 1599 now heads to the state Senate for consideration.