马里兰州巴尔的摩居民10月26日首场听证反对BGE涨价1.56亿美元，欠费已超2亿美元
马里兰州巴尔的摩市消息，马里兰州公共服务委员会10月26日就巴尔的摩燃气电力公司（BGE）提出的1.56亿美元涨价申请举行首场公开听证，巴尔的摩市官员与居民到场反对，认为涨价将加深本已严峻的可负担性危机。按申请内容，涨价若全额获批，电力配送费率将上涨约17%，普通居民用户的燃气与电力合计账单每月将增加约8美元；委员会定于2027年1月作出决定。巴尔的摩市议会议长泽克·科恩呼吁委员会否决涨价并限制公司可获得的股东回报，他说公司已赚取逾10亿美元利润，而家庭却在为账单挣扎。州政府数据显示，BGE居民用户到明年6月的欠费预计将达2.04亿美元，是新冠疫情期间的两倍多、疫情前的五倍；约翰斯·霍普金斯大学的一项研究发现，巴尔的摩有孩子的家庭中逾半数在过去一年错过一次公用事业缴费。巴尔的摩居民、小企业主肖娜·沃特金斯在听证会上说，人们被迫在公用事业服务、食品、房租与其他基本需求之间抉择。委员会还将再举行两场听证，涨价是否获批以委员会最终决定为准。
Baltimore Residents Oppose BGE's $156 Million Rate Increase at First Hearing on October 26; Arrears Top $200 Million
Baltimore, Maryland — The Maryland Public Service Commission held the first public hearing on October 26 on Baltimore Gas and Electric's (BGE) proposed $156 million rate increase, where Baltimore officials and residents spoke in opposition, saying the increase would deepen an already severe affordability crisis. If approved in full, the proposal would raise electric distribution rates by about 17% and add roughly $8 a month to the average residential customer's combined gas and electric bill; the commission is scheduled to decide in January 2027. Baltimore City Council President Zeke Cohen urged the commission to deny the increase and limit the company's shareholder returns, saying the company has made more than $1 billion in profits while families struggle to pay bills. State figures project BGE residential customers' overdue bills will reach $204 million by next June — more than twice the pandemic-era level and five times the pre-pandemic level — and a Johns Hopkins University study found that more than half of Baltimore households with children missed a utility payment in the past year. Baltimore resident and small-business owner Shonna Watkins told the hearing that people are being forced to choose between utility service, groceries, rent and other basic needs. Two more hearings will follow, and whether the increase is approved rests with the commission's final decision.
来源：GSM·美国（原文链接）
图片来源：图：马里兰州巴尔的摩市市景（资料图）。Matthew Binebrink 摄，CC BY-SA 4.0，来源：Wikimedia Commons / Photo: Baltimore, Maryland (file photo). By Matthew Binebrink, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
