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Thursday, March 28, 2024 - 12:28 PM

INDEPENDENT CONSERVATIVE VOICE OF UPSTATE SOUTH CAROLINA

First Published in 1994

INDEPENDENT CONSERVATIVE VOICE OF
UPSTATE SOUTH CAROLINA

To the South Carolina Public Service Commission,
101 Executive Center Dr, Suite 100,
Columbia, South Carolina 29210
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 803-896-5100
Regarding, my objection to Duke Energy’s request for a 12% increase in electric power rates.

I am opposed to Duke Power Energy raising electric rates because it is a tax on the poorest of people, including the sick, the helpless and the unemployed. Duke constantly asked for rate increases and they have made so much money they have bought out Piedmont Natural Gas for billions of dollars. Besides polluting rivers with coal ash, Duke Power got a rate increase to help build the Oconee Nuclear Plant 50 years ago saying they were spending $1 million per day to build the plant that would cut power rates. 

Where is Duke Power Energy now that they have never cut rates on their customers, just raised them.  Why do we need to pay a public service commission in this state to stamp approval on every Duke rate increase Duke presents.  We could install robots to do that and there must be a reason that the Public Service Commission is not more sensitive to the economic conditions of the people of the state that are suffering.  I must ask Duke energy to withdraw their request and honor their promise to cut rates we paid 50 years ago to build the Oconee Nuclear Plant so we would have lower electric power rates.

I happen to hear this on TV that I seldom watch anymore.  It was announcing a hearing in Spartanburg.  For some reason the local news media altogether seem to favor corporate extravagance at the People’s expense.  No one on Social Security can afford the 12% increase.  After a number of years of no increase in Social Security benefits, only this year they raised it about 2%. What a pity they did not raise it 12%.  The $16 per month increase as reported on television for the average home bill sounds so innocent. But, for people who have $1,000 per month power bill, that calculates $260 per month increase and that is exorbitant.  There are 2 groups of people that it does not matter with, the homeless, that no longer have a meter and the well to do wherein it does not make any difference how much they pay.  Also the deceased no longer need Duke’s power.  I must say conscientiously that Duke’s request is a disgrace.  Duke Energy should be ashamed of their heavy handedness and constant request for more money.

Duke Energy is taking full advantage of the capitalistic system that brings the most suffering to people.  I will go so far to say that with this greed and arrogance in the utility that people must all have, needs to be nationalized or taken over by the state and it should not be allowed to continue in free enterprise.  No one should profit on people suffering and always under strain to pay the bills before the power is cut off.  Even Piedmont natural gas cut their rates at one point when gas was so abundant, but what about Duke Power after building the Oconee nuclear plant producing electricity so much cheaper.  According to their own words, they never ever cut the rates as they lead the public to believe they would do in the end. I feel compelled to write on behalf of those people who are hurting to maintain a home with power to see to read and to stay warm and cool, especially with current extreme weather conditions we are seeing.  I wish to enter a request with the South Carolina public service commission to cut Duke Energy’s rates by 50%.  I honestly believe this is justified in light of all of their eccentric power rate increases.  Another issue is about 2 years ago, Duke had someone to spray Roundup on all the small trees poisoning the ground. Duke moved out of the state years ago, making it difficult to communicate with or pay a bill.

I request you all stop and think all these things over and have some pity on the people that are suffering to pay the power bill and buy food to live on.  At the same time.  The increase may cause some people to need to get a 3rd job and mothers to leave their children unattended at times to pay and all of this causes major disruptions of normal living.  As we are due.  There may be no opposition on the Public Service Commission, but I believe if the true synthesis is known of the community.  There is a lot of opposition. I suggest a group of volunteers, maybe students be sent to homes to collect the opposition from the average individual that could never attend a public hearing not being able to express their opposition or their inability to pay a rate increase while they are struggling to pay the regular rate. The best way I can think of is to mail a questionnaire to each Duke customer asking about any rate increase.

Homeless people are invisible to public hearings and increase in rates makes it harder for them to ever recover where they would be a customer of Duke, Energy once again.  We must consider the homeless.  The growing homeless problem in this country is fueled by corporate greed and that is shameful for us.

Some time ago we were having trouble with sudden interruptions of power that was caused from a cross tie made of aluminum that fries a squirrel when they are sitting on it and touch the power line.  Finally, Duke came out and replaced it with the old-fashioned wood type crossmember to carry the lines.  Unfortunately, recently we have had a reoccurrence of the aluminum cross tie and that may be causing problems. I’ve heard of power outage in other states caused by squirrels, it should be corrected.

Natural gas is free coming out of the ground like water is free except for the chemicals they apply on the way to you.  Electric power is also free from the sun. If Duke Energy had developed solar collectors, then their cost of production would be almost nothing.  Where is Duke, left behind, when the sun shines for free, with the exception of the clandestine ‘chemtrails’ spraying the atmosphere daily to hide the sun.

Is Duke Energy doing their job? No.  According to the following website, they pleaded guilty to dumping coal ash in the river paying a fine of $102 million and now they want us, we the people, to pay their fine through higher utility rates.  Duke has a monopoly on electric power and now on natural gas in the state.

I have read what Duke has posted online about their glowing new plans to streamline the system making it more digitally controlled and that is basically the same song and dance rhetoric we heard years ago to justify rate increases.  A totally digitized system is more vulnerable to world scammers shutting it down.

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/duke-energy-fined-102-million-in-coal-ash-spill/

I urge the public service commission to deny Duke Energy any increase and consider lowering their rate.

Sincerely – William Thompson, 106 DuPont Dr., Greenville, SC 29607

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