In support of an Act Facilitating Public Ownership of Public Utilities.

WHEREAS: On November 1, 2024, natural gas rates for Massachusetts residents increased between eleven to thirteen percent for National Grid customers, and between twenty-five to thirty percent for Eversource customers; and WHEREAS: Some Massachusetts residents have seen natural gas rate increases as high as twenty-seven percent; and WHEREAS: Eversource reported profits over eight hundred million dollars in 2024, including an approximately twenty-nine percent increase in profits on natural gas delivery in Massachusetts from 2023 to 2024; and WHEREAS: Representative Mike Connolly has filed H.3466, An Act Facilitating Public Ownership of Public Utilities, to study and make recommendations regarding the ownership of the means of producing and distributing natural gas and electricity, including the potential for state-wide, municipal, or cooperative ownership; and WHEREAS: Publicly owned utilities serve the public interest rather than prioritizing profit, leading to lower rates, and granting the ratepayer significant control over the management of their utilities through the democratic process; and WHEREAS: Over two thousand municipalities in the United States are “public power” communities, utilizing publicly owned electric systems, and over one thousand municipalities utilize publicly owned natural gas systems; and WHEREAS: Massachusetts is home to over forty public power communities, and four - Holyoke, Middleborough, Wakefield, and Westfield - that also utilize publicly owned natural gas systems; NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED: That the Somerville City Council supports H.3466, An Act facilitating Public Ownership of Public Utilities and encourages the Joint Committee on Telecommunications, Utilities, and Energy to give it a favorable report.