A JOINT RESOLUTION directing the Public Service Commission to explore measures that would address affordability and the provision of essential utility services and declaring an emergency.
SJR75 is a joint resolution directing the Kentucky Public Service Commission (PSC) to open one or more administrative cases to study ways to improve the affordability of essential utility services for low- and fixed-income customers. The resolution focuses on electric, gas, water, and wastewater service and asks the PSC to examine strategies that could help households maintain continuous service and avoid delinquencies, late fees, and disconnections.
The resolution also requires the PSC to invite participation from utilities, affected communities, and nonprofit advocacy organizations, and to evaluate a range of possible solutions, including rate design changes, financial assistance programs, and other regulatory or nonregulatory approaches. The PSC must report its findings and recommendations to the Legislative Research Commission by September 1, 2027, identifying measures that could be implemented by the General Assembly, the PSC, or utilities. The measure contains an emergency clause, so it would take effect immediately upon enactment because of concerns about rising electricity costs and possible reductions in LIHEAP funding.
The bill does not directly change utility rate statutes or create a new assistance program, but it does formally direct the PSC to initiate administrative proceedings and produce recommendations on affordability and disconnection issues. Its practical impact would be to expand the PSC’s focus on affordability within its existing authority over fair, just, and reasonable rates, while creating a legislative record that could support future statutory, regulatory, or utility-level changes affecting electric, gas, water, and wastewater customers, especially low-income and fixed-income households.
The available vote history suggests strong support for the resolution, with the Senate adopting it 35-0 after amendment. The bill’s findings frame utility affordability as a public health and safety issue, and the emergency clause indicates urgency around rising electricity costs and anticipated LIHEAP funding reductions. Overall, the discussion context points to a broadly sympathetic and proactive approach toward vulnerable customers and utility affordability.
No committee transcript is available, and the recorded Senate vote shows no opposition, so there is little evidence of direct controversy in the materials provided. The main policy tension implied by the bill is between keeping utility rates affordable for consumers and ensuring utilities can meet revenue requirements, along with how far the PSC should go in exploring rate design changes, financial assistance, and other interventions. Utilities, consumer advocates, and affected communities are all identified as stakeholders, suggesting that any future implementation could involve debate over costs, rate impacts, and the scope of regulatory action.