Capital Connections - August 2026

The North Carolina General Assembly returned to Raleigh last week after passing the state budget in early July. The House held skeletal sessions, while the Senate met for committee work and a voting session, advancing several pieces of legislation.

Among the bills the Senate approved is House Bill 958, which would make several changes to the elections process. The bill would require candidates to be affiliated with a political party for 365 days before filing a notice of candidacy for that party’s primary. It would also adjust campaign expenditure filing thresholds and establish post-election audits by the state auditor.

The Senate also approved House Bill 268, a budget technical corrections bill that would update the recently enacted state budget. The bill includes funding for the Department of Commerce’s Energy and Infrastructure Office and other agencies, appropriations for economic development and sporting events, and a change to the Local Government Commission that would replace the secretary of state with an appointee of the Senate President Pro Tempore.

Both bills now move to the House for consideration. The Senate also introduced an adjournment resolution that outlines session dates throughout the remainder of the year, with final adjournment sine die (meaning lawmakers will adjourn without setting a date to reconvene) scheduled for Dec. 18, 2026.

Rhian Ray

Goverment Affairs Manager

Dalton Ashworth

Government Affairs Associate

Leah Kirby

Senior Copywriter

House Bill 1094 Signed Into Law

Gov. Josh Stein has signed House Bill 1094, a Department of Transportation omnibus bill the North Carolina General Assembly passed last month. While the legislation includes a range of transportation-related provisions, one section directly affects public power utilities.

Section 25 of the bill clarifies the reimbursement protocol for utility infrastructure in unrecorded easements being absorbed by the DOT right-of-way. Utilities can show they have a compensable interest in the easement through service agreements, affidavits, or similar documentation. This legislation aligns with reimbursement proof thresholds that have been used for decades.

ElectriCities worked with NCDOT to ensure public power utilities were included in the bill and appreciates the input and support member utilities provided throughout the legislative process.

Please contact the ElectriCities Government Affairs team if you have any questions regarding this legislation.

ElectriCities Supports Pledge to Protect Utility Customers

In coordination with the Large Public Power Council, ElectriCities recently signed the White House Ratepayer Protection Pledge, along with the American Public Power Association and more than 280 utilities, cooperatives, and data center developers.

The pledge reflects a shared commitment to protecting ratepayers by ensuring data center developers, AI companies, and hyperscalers cover the costs of the power and infrastructure needed to serve their facilities.

Notable signatories of the pledge include Amazon, Google, Meta, Microsoft, OpenAI, and Oracle.

Under the pledge, participating organizations commit to five key principles:

Build, bring, or buy new power supply needed to serve their facilities while paying the full cost, and where possible, adding capacity that increases supply for others.

Pay for new power delivery infrastructure needed to connect and serve new facilities.

Pay whether power is used or not by voluntarily negotiating new, separate rate structures with utilities and state governments and paying set rates whether the electricity is used or not.

Invest in local jobs and workforce development by hiring locally and supporting workforce development programs in the communities where facilities are located.

Contribute to grid and community resilience through coordinating with grid operators to strengthen reliability while supporting community preparedness.

Duke Energy Carolinas Reaches Agreement With NC Public Staff

Following negotiations between Duke Energy Carolinas and the North Carolina Public Staff, the utility reached an agreement that would reduce its proposed rate increase to an average of 3.7% annually over two years, pending approval from the North Carolina Utilities Commission.

Other terms of the agreement include a 9.8% return on equity and a 53% equity component of the utility’s capital structure. Also included is a new multiyear rate plan refund rider that would provide refunds to customers if planned infrastructure projects are not completed on schedule.

Additionally, Duke Energy announced that its shareholders will contribute $10 million toward low-income bill assistance and weatherization programs, on top of existing funding. The utility also said it plans to pursue similar terms for Duke Energy Progress customers.

The NCUC will review the agreement and issue a final decision. If approved, the new rates would take effect Jan. 1, 2027.

Read more here.

LPPC Releases Affordability Fact Sheet

As affordability continues to be a growing focus across the energy industry, the Large Public Power Council recently released an affordability fact sheet highlighting how public power utilities compare favorably with other areas on customer costs.

According to the study, LPPC member utilities, including ElectriCities and the public power communities we serve, offer some of the most affordable residential electric rates in the country, with average rates that are 19% below the national average. The report also found that since 2010, residential electric rates among LPPC members have remained 17% below the rate of inflation and have increased far less than many other everyday goods and services.

The fact sheet also highlights several benefits of the public power model. LPPC members operate some of the most reliable electric systems in the nation, experiencing roughly one-third fewer service interruptions than the national average. This reliability contributes to consistently high customer satisfaction ratings.

Unlike investor-owned utilities, public power utilities are locally governed and accountable to the communities they serve, rather than shareholders. Because they do not have to generate profits for investors and can access lower-cost financing, public power utilities often can keep rates more affordable for customers.

The findings reinforce the value of the public power model, demonstrating how municipally owned utilities can deliver reliable service, support customers in need, and provide affordable electric rates in the communities they serve, all while in an environment of continually rising costs.

To learn more, please contact the ElectriCities Government Affairs team.

President Trump Imposes New Tariffs

With the expiration of a temporary global 10% tariff, President Donald Trump has introduced new tariffs ranging from 10% to 12.5% on imports from 60 U.S. trading partners. The move replaces tariffs that were struck down by the U.S. Supreme Court earlier this year and shifts the tariffs’ legal foundation to Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974. It is considered a more durable basis for trade action than the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, under which the earlier tariffs were imposed.

The administration has said the tariffs are intended to address unfair trade practices and strengthen enforcement of prohibitions on goods produced with forced labor. Several products are exempt from the new tariffs, including oil, natural gas, and fertilizer.

The tariffs are expected to affect a broad range of imported goods and could increase costs for equipment and materials that public power utilities use, including electrical infrastructure components sourced through global supply chains. ElectriCities continues to evaluate the potential impact on procurement costs and future projects.