Washington, D.C. — Following news that New York Public Service Commission (PSC) has delayed a vote on the proposed settlement in Con Edison’s pending 2026–2028 rate case, which would include roughly 3-5% annual increases in electric rates over the next three years, the American Economic Liberties Project released the following statement.

“At a time when New Yorkers are already stretched thin, they shouldn’t be forced to bankroll yet another Wall Street windfall,” said Pat Garofalo, Director of State and Local Policy at the American Economic Liberties Project. “Soaring utility bills are a major driver of the affordability crisis across the country, and monopoly utilities have successfully manipulated the regulatory process to secure unreasonable profits for investors at the expense of families that need energy. Con Edison’s proposal would raise bills even as utilities already earn returns far above their true cost of capital — money that comes straight out of families’ pocketbooks with no added benefit. This rate increase is yet another holdover of the outgoing Adams administration, which pushed the proposal forward amid mounting scrutiny from the community.”

“Instead of increasing costs for New Yorkers, the PSC must reject this settlement,” added Garofalo, “while Governor Kathy Hochul and lawmakers should codify return on equity reform to ensure that rate increases reflect real costs instead of financial engineering.”

Con Edison and other investor-owned utilities operate as state-sanctioned monopolies, and under long-standing law their profits are supposed to match their actual cost of capital. But as research from Economic Liberties shows, utilities nationwide have been allowed to earn returns far above what the market requires, fueling a cycle of excessive investment, rising bills, and record corporate profits at the public’s expense. Residential electricity rates for investor-owned utilities have grown nearly 50% faster than inflation in recent years, while millions of households struggle to pay monthly energy bills. Meanwhile, rates from municipal-owned utilities often rise lower than inflation. Restoring the basic standard that the rate of return must equal the real cost of capital would stop unjustified overcharges and ensure customer dollars go toward genuine public need rather than shareholder enrichment.

Read “Rate of Return Equals Cost of Capital: A Simple, Fair Formula to Stop Investor-Owned Utilities From Overcharging the Public,” here.

Learn more about Economic Liberties here.

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The American Economic Liberties Project works to ensure America’s system of commerce is structured to advance, rather than undermine, economic liberty, fair commerce, and a secure, inclusive democracy. Economic Liberties believes true economic liberty means entrepreneurs and businesses large and small succeed on the merits of their ideas and hard work; commerce empowers consumers, workers, farmers, and engineers instead of subjecting them to discrimination and abuse from financiers and monopolists; international trade arrangements that promote promote balanced trade and benefit workers, farmers and small businesses; and wealth is broadly distributed to support equitable political power.