In the mid-1990s, Pennsylvania was plagued with inefficient power generation, soaring prices, and rolling blackouts. Electric rates were 15% higher than the national average, and Philadelphia and Pittsburgh residential electricity prices were among the 10 highest in the country. The Electricity Generation Customer Choice and Competition Act changed all of that — and the results have been nothing short of remarkable.
But a little-known settlement agreement that is now before the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (PUC) would quietly but devastatingly end retail electricity choice for more than 2 million First Energy customers, throwing away nearly three decades of hard-won progress. It should be rejected.
By eliminating retail electricity choice for customers in the Met-Ed, Penn Power, Penelec, and West Penn Power service territories, this decision would tell those customers — families, small businesses, manufacturers, nonprofits — that the competitive market we built together is no longer available to them. That is not a minor regulatory adjustment. That is a fundamental reversal of Pennsylvania energy policy, and it deserves to be treated as exactly that.
The Cost Savings Are Real — and Documented
The data on savings from retail choice is unambiguous. In 2024, customers who enrolled in the lowest fixed-rate retail supply offer saved an average of 34% on their energy supply bill compared to the utility supply charge. When compared to what customers would have paid under the old monopoly model adjusted for inflation, the savings are even more striking: retail customers in 2024 paid 26% to 67% less for electricity supply than they would have in 1996. In the Met-Ed territory specifically, a shopping customer in 2024 paid just $33.86 per month for supply, compared to $54.15 under the default utility rate — a savings of $20.30, or 38%. In Penn Power territory, that same shopping customer paid 53% less than the inflation-adjusted 1996 monopoly rate.
These are not marginal differences. Stripping First Energy customers of the ability to shop does not protect them — it costs them money.
Contract Certainty Is a Financial Lifeline
One of the most underappreciated benefits of retail choice is the ability to lock in a price for a defined period. In 2024, Pennsylvania saw an average of 116 varying retail offers available each month, including long-term fixed-rate contracts. Fixed-rate retail supplier offers were
available in every utility service territory, and in all seven territories, those offers came in below the default utility rate.
Homeowners budget. Small businesses plan. Manufacturers manage margins. The ability to sign a one-, two-, or even three-year fixed-rate electricity contract is a financial planning tool that utility default service simply cannot replicate, as it reprices periodically and passes market volatility directly to customers.
Environmental Choice Is Not a Luxury
Competition has also been a powerful engine of environmental progress. Before restructuring, more than 50% of Pennsylvania's electricity came from burning coal. Over the past 30 years, coal plants could not compete with lower-cost energy sources and have been closing, reducing coal generation to just 15% of Pennsylvania's electricity. Today, customers who want to power their homes and businesses with 100% renewable energy can do so through competitive suppliers.
But eliminating supplier choice eliminates that option entirely — and it forecloses the next generation of innovation as well. In Texas, consumers with solar and batteries can slash their bills by selling power back into the market during peak periods, and companies are leveraging innovative technologies like Virtual Power Plants to improve grid reliability. Modest regulatory changes in Pennsylvania would make these options available here, too. Approving this settlement slams the door on that future.
The PUC Must Hold the Line
Pennsylvania has become a leader in the energy landscape and one of the top exporters of electricity because of competition. The Commission should reject this settlement and send a clear signal: retail electricity choice in Pennsylvania is not negotiable. The customers of First Energy have earned the right to choose. Now is the time to build on this success — not abandon it.