Sign up for the Planet Money newsletter. The world is confusing.Economics can help.TULSA, Okla.
— Raelynn McMurchy was shocked when she opened her most recent electric bill.After some late payments in the past, the utility had tacked on a deposit of nearly $600, pushing the total to $1,373."Our electric bill is literally more than our rent this month," McMurchy said in a TikTok video that quickly racked up more than 100,000 views.
"I make decent money and that's not sustainable for my family.That's crazy."McMurchy, who works nights at a Tulsa hospital, launched a petition on Change.org, calling on Oklahoma regulators to crack down on soaring power bills.
Around the country, electricity prices have been climbing faster than the overall cost of living, according to the Labor Department.That's especially expensive in the hot summer months, when fans and air conditioners are running around the clock.
Tulsa's main power company, Public Service Company of Oklahoma (PSO), wanted to raise residential electric rates by about 15% this year.It agreed with the state attorney general to lower that to 1% in a settlement that still has to be approved by regulators.
Even with no rate increase, though, Tulsa electric bills would be spiking this year because of searing summer heat, with more than twice the average number of triple-digit days.Summer heat waves are becoming more frequent and intense around the country as a result of climate change, largely caused by the burning of fossil fuels.People who fall behind on their bills in Oklahoma face an unusually high risk of having their power shut off.
PSO cuts power to customers at more than five times the average national rate, according to a first-of-its-kind tally by the U.S.Energy Department.
(The report is based on shutoffs in 2024.) While some states prohibit shutoffs throughout the hot summer months, the Oklahoma Corporation Commission, which regulates utilities in the state, allows them, so long as the heat ind...