Across the United States, electricity bills are poised for significant changes this fall, with households from Oak Ridge, Tennessee, to San Diego, California, and even as far as New Jersey, bracing for new rate hikes, billing overhauls, and political promises. The common thread? Rising costs, shifting energy policies, and a public wrestling with the impact on their wallets.
In Oak Ridge, Tennessee, the City of Oak Ridge Electric Department (CORED) announced on August 23, 2025, that residents will see a 2.75% rate adjustment beginning in October. As reported by the City of Oak Ridge, this translates to an average increase of approximately $3.50 per month for residential customers, with the hike showing up in bills starting late October or early November. CORED’s leadership framed the move as essential for keeping the lights on—literally and figuratively.
“For the average residential customer, this change will mean an increase of approximately $3.50 per month on their electric bill,” said DeDe Wolfe, Oak Ridge Utility Business Office Manager, in a public release. Interim Director Keith Atkins underlined the necessity of the adjustment, explaining, “As we continue investing in reliable service and maintaining the infrastructure that powers our community, these small adjustments are sometimes necessary.”
The Oak Ridge increase, while modest on the surface, is emblematic of a larger national trend: as the costs of maintaining and upgrading electric infrastructure continue to rise, utility providers are passing at least some of the burden onto consumers. The balancing act between affordability and reliability is only getting trickier, especially as inflation and modernization needs persist.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the country, San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E) is preparing to roll out a sweeping overhaul of its billing structure this October—a change that will affect 1.25 million residential customers. According to The San Diego Union-Tribune, the new structure, mandated by California Assembly Bill 205 passed in 2022, will simultaneously reduce electricity rates by an average of 10% (about 5 cents per kilowatt-hour) and introduce a fixed base service charge of $24.15 per month on every residential bill.
For some, the changes will mean savings; for others, higher bills. For example, a typical inland customer using 400 kilowatt-hours per month will see their bill rise by $4, reaching $175. Those on assistance programs like CARE or FERA will see a $4 reduction. But low-usage customers (200 kWh per month) will face a $14 increase, jumping from $84 to $98. CARE customers in this bracket will see a $1 increase, while FERA customers’ bills will rise $4.
The base service charge is designed to cover fixed infrastructure costs—think transformers, wires, and meters—as well as customer service and public purpose programs for low-income households. The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) insists this is not about new profits for utilities. “This billing adjustment that’s required by the Legislature is really, at its foundation, a key lever to propel us toward our decarbonization goals,” CPUC President Alice Busching Reynolds said during the May 2024 vote. She called it “a very incremental, but important step towards this decarbonized future.”
California’s ambitious target is to derive 100% of its electricity from carbon-free sources by 2045, and the new billing structure is meant to encourage electrification—buying electric vehicles, swapping out gas appliances for electric ones, and more. Adam Pierce, SDG&E’s vice president of energy procurement and rates, noted, “So what this structure is really doing is helping modernize this billing structure that hasn’t changed in several decades (to match) what the new energy landscape in California is going to ultimately look like.”
Not everyone is convinced. Critics, including consumer advocates and state legislators, worry the new fixed charge will hit low-usage and lower-income customers hardest, while rewarding high-consumption households regardless of whether their usage is due to electrification or simply wastefulness. Jenn Engstrom, state director of CALPIRG, argued, “What we really want to see are efforts to actually rein in some of the overspending that the utilities are doing so that they don’t have to then put that back on consumers.” She pointed out that utility profit rates remain among the highest in the country.
There’s also skepticism about the legislative process that birthed these changes. AB 205 was passed swiftly at the end of the 2022 session as part of a massive omnibus bill, with little debate on the fixed charge provision. Initial proposals called for income-based charges as high as $128 per month for upper-income earners, but technical and privacy concerns led the CPUC to settle on a flat $24.15 charge for all. State Senate Minority Leader Brian Jones warned, “There’s nothing in what the PUC approved that prevents them from raising it next year to $50 or $100. The PUC has unchecked power on this thing.”
Even as these changes take effect in California and Tennessee, the political battle over electric bills is heating up in New Jersey. On August 24, 2025, the state’s gubernatorial race became a flashpoint for the issue. Democratic candidate Mikie Sherrill pledged to freeze utility rates for one year if elected, vowing to declare a state of emergency over the issue on her first day in office. “Rising electric bills are breaking the back of too many families when we have an overall affordability crisis,” Sherrill said, as reported by the New Jersey Monitor. She promised to ramp up in-state power generation, supporting new solar and battery storage projects, expediting upgrades at nuclear plants, and modernizing natural gas facilities.
Her opponent, Republican Jack Ciattarelli, placed the blame for rate spikes squarely on Democratic policies, particularly those of outgoing Governor Phil Murphy. “When I’m Governor, things are going to change. I’ll ban offshore wind and diversify our energy sources in New Jersey to once again include natural gas and nuclear,” Ciattarelli stated. He also pledged to rewrite the state’s energy master plan and deliver “safe, clean, and sustainable energy to everyone in our state at a price you can afford.”
The debate in New Jersey reflects the broader, often partisan, national divide over how best to manage rising utility costs. Democrats in the Garden State have pointed fingers at PJM Interconnection, the regional grid operator, for slow progress on integrating renewable energy. Republicans counter that failed renewable projects and an overemphasis on green energy are to blame for surging bills.
Whether it’s the nuts-and-bolts reality of infrastructure costs in Tennessee, the sweeping policy experiments in California, or the heated rhetoric of New Jersey’s campaign trail, one thing is clear: Americans are paying close attention to their electric bills, and the choices made today—by regulators, lawmakers, and utility companies—will shape the cost and character of the nation’s energy future.
As these new rates and structures roll out this fall, households across the country will be watching their mailboxes and bank accounts, hoping for relief but preparing for change.
