Californians’ High Utility Bills Blamed on Climate Policies

Democrat and Republican Assembly members express frustration as electricity rates rise and customers struggle to keep the lights on.

Vehicles drive on the California 14 Highway next to solar panels, part of an electricity generation plant, in Kern County near Mojave, Calif., on June 18, 2021. Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty Images

With electricity bills on the rise in California, lawmakers from both sides of the aisle are venting their frustration with the effect the state Legislature’s “clean energy” policies are having on constituents.

“As anyone ... who’s opened their utility bill recently can testify, rates are skyrocketing in California,” Assemblywoman Cottie Petrie-Norris, chair of the Assembly Utilities and Energy Committee, said to open a March meeting that served as the annual update of the utility industry. “The harsh reality is that millions of Californians are at the breaking point.”