BLACKSBURG — Lawmakers, candidates and community leaders gathered Thursday night in Blacksburg for the final stop of Clean Virginia’s “The Energy Bills Are Too Damn High!” town hall tour, calling for urgent action to rein in soaring electric bills and monopoly utility control in Southwest Virginia.
The event was hosted by House of Delegates candidate Lily Franklin (HD41) with support from Sen. Jennifer Carroll Foy (SD33), Del. Sam Rasoul (HD38) and House of Delegates candidate Joy Powers (HD51). Together, they joined residents and advocates to spotlight how Appalachian Power Company’s (APCo) repeated rate hikes have driven monthly bills to some of the highest levels in the Commonwealth.
Appalachian Power customers have seen an increase of 158 percent since 2007, with the average residential bill jumping from $67 to $172 per month, more than triple the rate of inflation.
“Families in Southwest Virginia are paying for monopoly mismanagement,” said Lily Franklin, House District 41 candidate. “APCo makes more money when it spends more, and customers get stuck with the bill. It’s time for lawmakers to put working people first, not utility profits.”
Speakers shared how Appalachian Power’s reliance on expensive fossil fuels and a lack of strong regulatory oversight have left customers vulnerable to market volatility. They called for reforms to strengthen state oversight, accelerate clean-energy investments, and prevent utilities from shifting costs onto customers.
“Appalachian Power has raised bills faster than wages for years, and it’s time for accountability,” said Brennan Gilmore, executive director of Clean Virginia. “Virginians deserve an energy system that rewards efficiency, innovation and affordability, not one that treats customers like a captive revenue stream.”
Clean Virginia’s “The Energy Bills Are Too Damn High!” tour has traveled across the state this fall, bringing lawmakers and residents together in Manassas, Richmond, Fredericksburg and Blacksburg to expose the political and corporate forces driving Virginia’s energy affordability crisis and to build momentum for reform ahead of the election and the 2026 legislative session.
For more information, visit www.toodamnhigh.org.
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