PUCO puts an end to AEP rate hike

Ohio’s electricity regulator has reversed course on a proposed electricity rate plan it approved two months ago, according to The Columbus Dispatch.

The rate plan put forward by American Electric Power and its subsidiary AEP Ohio proposed to shift some of the burden of higher electricity prices from major users to smaller customers, particularly those with irregular usage.

After the new electricity rates came into effect, some customers saw their electricity bills rise as much as 40 percent. This included particularly vulnerable customers such as churches and schools.

After receiving thousands of complaints about the news rules, the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio unanimously decided to rescind approval of rate plant, which had initially received unanimous approval.

“The evidence in the record inadvertently failed to present a full and accurate record of the actual bill impacts to be felt by customers,” PUCO Chairman Todd Snitchler said in a statement, according to The Plain Dealer.

AEP Ohio called the move “unprecedented,” arguing that the issues with the rate plan could have been resolved without such dramatic action. It remains unclear what AEP Ohio will suggest when it is required to put forward a new rate plan.