Baltimore residents react to proposed $9 monthly BGE surcharge
Baltimore residents react to proposed $9 monthly BGE surcharge
Baltimore City residents may see a $9 monthly surcharge added to their BGE bills starting in January if the Maryland Public Service Commission approves the utility company’s request to offset increased city conduit fees.
BGE said the surcharge is intended to shield customers in surrounding counties from absorbing the additional costs.
"To change how these costs are allocated so that customers outside of Baltimore City are not absorbing these costs that are unjustified by the city for their infrastructure," said Tamla Olivier, BGE president and CEO.
The proposal has drawn criticism from Baltimore residents, who say the plan is unfair.
"I mean, it wouldn’t kill me, but it’s not fair," said Kenneth Morris, a city resident. "It's not fair for city residents to bear that burden. I think we should spread [it] all over all of the residents of the state if it's going to be impacting all the residents."
Another city resident, Marvin Scott, shared his frustration.
"So they (are) making changes, and it's like somebody else is making you pay something, and in turn, those (who) need it, they're going to up it on us. That's not fair," Scott said.
Consumer advocate Emily Scarr, who works with the Maryland Public Interest Research Group, criticized BGE’s request and called for stronger regulation of the utility company.
"They’re losing a stream of income for their shareholders, and I see this as them having a temper tantrum," Scarr said. "They need to be properly regulated by the Public Service Commission. And when their profits continue to go up and they're failing on customer service, something is wrong with that regulation. And we need our state leaders and our regulators to intervene."
The Maryland Public Service Commission has not announced when it will make a decision on BGE’s request. A spokesperson for the commission said they could not comment on the matter due to policy.